


Children of Eden: Penance

by juuten



Series: Children of Eden [1]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, F/M, M/M, Supernatural Elements, human!soonyoung, vampire!mingyu
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-30
Updated: 2019-03-13
Packaged: 2019-08-11 02:19:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 53,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16466834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/juuten/pseuds/juuten
Summary: The human boy with the frosty blue hair makes Mingyu feel things he's never felt before.





	1. Chapter 1

 

 

 

 

  
_Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live._

_-Norman Cousins_

 

 

 

 

 

Kim Mingyu did not fear death.

 

He had already died once before, many centuries ago.

 

But he did fear what came after death.

 

He wondered if he would ever see his brothers and sisters again. How long would they have to live with the pain of his demise?

 

He wondered if he would ever reunite with his maker. Despite sentencing him to death, Mingyu held no ill-will against his sire's decision, because there would never be anything but love in his heart for the only mother he's ever known.

 

She had once found him at death’s door - ugly, bleeding, and broken, and yet she still looked down at him with such tenderness and love and bestowed upon him the gift of immortality.

 

This time, she was here to take it away.

 

Mingyu opened his icy grey eyes, gazing up from where he was kneeling. Behind the thick black curtains in front of him, Eos had already bid adieu. In his stead, Helios awaited, bright and blazing mercilessly against the heavens - ready to claim his damned soul.

 

A small, sad smile tugged at his lips.

 

At least his family would not let him die alone. His beautiful and timid sister, Tzuyu, stared back at him in choked desolation. They had always been the closest out of all his siblings. Right by her side was Minnie, his sibling with the softest heart, sobbing into her handkerchief in tiny, pained gasps. His most winsome brother, Joshua, kept a straight face as he stood next to his two sisters. There was not an ounce of sadness in his eyes, and Mingyu couldn’t help but laugh deep inside. Joshua had always been too much of an enigma to build a proper relationship with, and his calculating mind was probably already thinking of finding Mingyu’s replacement. His oldest brother, Seungcheol remained sullen and, of all people, refused to look at him. Mingyu wanted to ask him why, but there was not enough time for conversation now - not after everything that’s happened. There were more faces he needed to see before his time was up.

 

Vernon was there too. Though they were not brothers, they were very good friends. He was glad Vernon had come to say goodbye. The younger male looked impossibly guilt-stricken, even though none of this was his fault. In fact, Mingyu felt nothing but gratefulness for his friend, because it was Vernon who had brought to him the greatest gift a person could ever receive - one far greater than immortality itself.

 

His best friend Wonwoo, on the other hand, held suppressed anger in his blood red eyes. He was furious about Mingyu’s death sentence. If Wonwoo’s maker had not been there to bind him - to prevent him from interfering, he probably would’ve lashed out at everyone in the room a long time ago and maybe even killed someone in rage.

 

Finally, his eyes found his mother’s. Just like his human death, she was looking down upon him - immaculate and flawless in her favorite white dress. But this time, there was no warmth in her expression. Her face remained blank, despite knowing that she would soon be losing one of her children.

 

“This is your penance,” his maker proclaimed in her honey voice - sticky and sweet but devoid of any emotion.

 

Something shifted in her smoldering eyes. It was faint, but Mingyu could see it.

 

It was abhorrence.

 

She hated him, and he could not blame her. After all, he was her greatest disappointment, and this was his punishment for being a failure of a fledgling.

 

Mingyu could only nod in silent acceptance as he stood up slowly.

 

His eyes swept the entire room one last time, looking for one last face to remember. There was only one person Mingyu loved more than anyone else in the world, even more than his own maker.

 

It was his special person.

 

This impossibly sublime being, whose eyes glistened in brown instead of red, was the keeper of his heart. Pure and kind and warm - nothing like the cold people who stood around him in this room.

 

A crippling pain blossomed in his chest, far more agonizing than any pain he’d ever experienced, and tears finally ran down his face.

 

Of course his most beloved person would not be there to say farewell.

 

The love of his life was already dead, and Mingyu was the one who killed him.

 

The dark-haired vampire wondered if he would ever see that person again - his beautiful face, his bright eyes…his gorgeous smile. Mingyu doubted that person would ever forgive him after everything that’s happened, after everything he’s done.

 

Once his body had turned to ash and his soul had been taken from this world, would he reunite with his love in heaven? Or would he perish alone in the fiery pits of hell?

 

What came after death for a monster like him?

 

The curtains were ripped away by his maker’s hands, and Mingyu closed his eyes.

 

Warmth he had not felt in centuries slowly enveloped him in a fiery embrace. There was no pain. There was no suffering. Instead, the heat of the sun gently caressed his cold skin, as if he were an innocent child who had committed no sin. He had not expected Thanatos to be so kind to him - to numb him from the burning of his flesh.

 

But the god of the sun and the god of death were not there to comfort him. They were there to bring forth his execution.

 

This was his penance, and this was his end.

 

 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

 

 

 

 

_Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live._

 

_-Norman Cousins_

 

 

 

 

 

The story began on the night of summer's end.

 

It had been a year since their maker, the ancient vampire Goo Hara, had left Seoul for her travels. She did not mention where she was headed, but she did insist that it would only be a brief vacation to escape the mundaneness of South Korea. In their world, a ‘short’ time away could have meant anywhere between ten to fifty years. Unlike normal human beings, the race against time was nonexistent for their kind.

 

Seungcheol, her eldest fledgling, was in charge of her estate and her children for the time being, and Mingyu could no longer bear his brother’s despotism. 

 

“Hyung, must I stay in this house any longer?” he argued irritably, already at wits-end from being housebound for the past year. “I can’t understand how Joshua-hyung hasn’t gone insane from being stuck here for the past fifty years.”

 

It was only half past midnight, and Mingyu was absolutely bored. As much as he loved cleaning and tending to their mother’s garden, there was not much else to do around the house. He’d grown tired of house work and reading every single night. He missed driving his car, he missed his friends, and most importantly, he missed drinking fresh blood from a human’s neck.

 

“Mother instructed me to protect you all,” Seungcheol answered sternly as he turned the pages of his book. The ebony-haired vampire was sitting at his desk like a diplomat, well-poised and dressed impeccably in his Giorgio Armani suit. He looked regal enough to be a king, but Seungcheol was only created to be a servant - to be specific, Hara’s general on the battlefield. “I cannot protect you all if we’re spread out across the city.”

 

“And yet you let Lisa and Jeonghan leave the house?” Mingyu exclaimed in indignation, pacing back and forth between the bookshelves. 

 

“They are not our siblings,” the eldest retorted casually, the exasperation in his voice almost perfectly concealed. 

 

Mingyu’s patience was slipping like a landslide. Running his hair through his short, chocolate-brown tresses, he took a few deep breaths and placed both hands on the desk between them. “Well what about Tzuyu and Minnie?”

 

Seungcheol paused for a second, glancing at his brother’s hands and hunched posture in displeasure. “They can fend for themselves…and they would not do anything… _stupid_.” 

 

The last word had been oozing with malice, undoubtedly meant as an insult against his youngest brother.

 

Mingyu bared his fangs in rage, eyes darkening to a blood red hue from his brother’s implication. “You think of me as stupid…but I’m not the one who killed my maker’s lover!”

 

Seungcheol slammed his book shut abruptly and moved around his desk to stand in front of his brother. Mingyu quickly turned to face him as well, taking a courageous step closer despite being aware of their uneven strengths. Seungcheol served as their family’s protector for a reason.

 

“Do not speak of things you know nothing of,” the ebony-haired vampire spoke venomously, unfazed by his younger brother’s larger build. There was nothing that could scare him. Centuries of fighting had made him far more superior in combat than any other vampire in the house. 

 

The two remained silent, limbs unmoving against their will as their eyes bore into one another with murderous intent. It was their mother’s absolute rule that they never hurt each other, and the power of her omniscient commands kept them still despite their desire to tear each other’s heads off.

 

The death of Hara’s former lover had always been a sensitive topic in their family. His name was Yong Junhyung - ancient, powerful, and in love with their maker. At one point in time, they had even exchanged vows and promises of a lifetime together, but like all great love stories, theirs ended in a tragedy that put Heloise and Abelard’s story to shame.

 

The incident happened centuries before Mingyu’s death and rebirth. No one knew the entire story nor did they know Seungcheol’s reason for killing their mother’s lover. But everyone knew that it had ended in Junhyung’s immolation - a death as painful as the sun’s golden rays.  

 

Though Hara did forgive Seungcheol for his transgression, she did not allow his sin to go unpunished. As Mingyu recalled the horrible penance his brother had to suffer through (Joshua had spared no gory detail), his anger steadily dissipated, and the feeling of guilt immediately took over, heavy and sickening in his chest. 

 

“Forgive me, brother,” he spoke softly, eyes returning to their cool, grey color. “I overstepped.”

 

The magic slowly wilted away with their tempers, loosening its grip on their throats until they could breathe and move their limbs again.  

 

Finally, Seungcheol sat back down and gave out a sigh.

 

“You are mother’s youngest, and she loves you the most,” his eldest brother explained bitterly through a pained smile. 

 

It was no secret how Mingyu was Hara’s most beloved child. She loved him more than any of her children, even more than Seungcheol - the first fledgling she ever created, and that fact made her eldest quite jealous of his youngest sibling. 

 

“You are her favorite, and she does not want to lose you the same way she lost Jackson.”

 

Mingyu had never met Jackson - a brother of theirs who ran away from their maker a long time ago. It was quite an embarrassing scandal for their family, and Joshua had been the one tasked to find him and end him.

 

He was not stupid like Jackson. He would not run away from his own maker. His love for her was too deep. It was painful to even think of ever leaving her kind and warm embrace.

 

“But remember, Mingyu,” Seungcheol snarled in warning. “Though you are her favorite, you are also her greatest disappointment.”

 

His lips pressed into a thin line. The youngest of their house could say nothing to defend himself because it was true. He was Hara's greatest failure. While his siblings remained true to what they were created for, he was not. He was perfect in every way possible as her child - obedient, powerful, and loyal. He would do anything and everything she asked of him without question. He would even take his own life if she wished that of him.

 

But there was one thing he could never do for her... 

 

“Run along, Mingyu,” his brother waved him off, returning his attention to his endless reading. “Stop thinking about leaving the house, and be useful like Joshua.”

 

Their youngest hurriedly walked away and slammed the door of the library shut, vexed at Seungcheol’s insinuation that he was both stupid _and_ useless. But of course, people only ever saw what Joshua did as productive. He owned companies all over the country, craftily running each and every one of them from the comfort of their maker’s estate, and with his business ventures came an exorbitant amount of profit - money for the entire family to use at their leisure. Mingyu wondered why he wasn’t their mother’s favorite based on that alone, especially since Hara loved shopping for expensive things. 

 

The brunet contemplated on what he could do for the rest of the night besides cleaning and reading. The rest of his siblings were far too busy with their own agendas to pay him any heed. Even his closest sibling, Tzuyu, had grown tired of her housemates and now spent most of her time with her new posse these days - daughters of the ancient Ok Taecyeon and fledglings of the Thai vampire king Nichkhun Horvejkul. 

 

As he entered his darkened room, the boy noticed a shadowy figure lying on his bed. He immediately tensed up and bared his fangs, growling at the intruder with a ferocious exhort. A soft glow illuminated the trespasser’s face, and Mingyu allowed himself to relax when he recognized who it was. 

 

“Vernon, why the hell are you in my bed?” Mingyu whispered, urgently closing the door of his bedroom. Seungcheol would have a fit if he found out that one of his friends had snuck into the property. Again. 

 

For some reason, Hara had always hated her children’s friends and forbade them from entering her abode. 

 

The blond-haired male - dressed rather oddly with his orange beanie, green basketball shorts, and obnoxious yellow hoodie covered in pink donuts - didn’t bother taking his eyes off his phone. “Cuz’ it’s comfy.”

 

Mingyu rolled his eyes. As if they really, truly had a need to lie down in a comfortable bed. He never understood why Joshua insisted they should all have beds in their rooms in the first place. “Well, what the hell are you doing here then?”

 

Vernon gave him a small pout, grey eyes hinted with honey refusing to leave the screen in front of him as his thumbs typed away. “I miss you, man. Wonwoo does too, but like, he’s grounded or something.”

 

“Grounded…or something?” the older vampire stated in confusion.

 

The age gap between them made communicating difficult at times. While Mingyu was born three centuries ago - back when people spoke more formally, Vernon had been created in the more recent decade. As a result, his speech was much more casual and more colorfully adorned with modern curse words and slang.

 

“Oh, I mean, he’s like...stuck at home? Can’t leave their house for a while?” 

 

“Then I guess both him and I are grounded then,” he replied thoughtfully, nodding in understanding. 

 

“But you didn’t do shit though,” Vernon argued, sitting up and swinging his legs off the bed. “Wonwoo actually punched someone in the face and well…broke the guy’s face.” 

 

"What?" Mingyu furrowed his brows at the revelation. “What happened?” 

 

Wonwoo was notorious for his vicious temper, picking fights with both mortals and immortals alike at every opportunity, but it was always just talk with him. For his best friend to actually hurt someone, that unlucky person must have done something to piss him off greatly. 

 

Vernon’s eyes, glinting with mischief, finally abandoned the glowing screen of his phone. “I’ll tell you if you come chill with me tonight. My roommate’s not gonna be home for a while.”

 

“You have a roommate now? Did your family acquire some sort of debt recently?” 

 

Tucking the electronic into his back pocket, Vernon pushed at the bedroom’s heavy curtains and stealthily opened the window to use as their escape route. “Nah, man. I just got my own place. Ennik and Nancy were getting annoying, and I’m so done with being their babysitter.”

 

Mingyu released a light chortle at his friend’s ordeal. “I’d love to ‘chill’ with you, Vernon, but hyung won’t let me leave the house.” 

 

The other vampire cocked his head to the side and frowned. “Your mother didn’t command you though, right? So you don’t even have to listen to Seungcheol.”

 

“Still, mother expects us to listen to hyung in her absence,” Mingyu reasoned, anxiously watching as his friend started climbing out the window. “Vernon, get back here.”

 

The younger vampire continued ignoring his pleas. “We gotta go. Sun rises in five hours!”

 

“Vernon, I’m serious. I can’t leave the house.”

 

With one hand gripping the edge of the window for safety, Vernon’s raised his other hand to his pursed lips, gesturing at his friend to keep quiet with a single digit. He gave Mingyu a maniacal grin before jumping off and landing safely on the estate’s grounds without making a sound. 

 

Mingyu knew better than to disobey his brother. He really did. But something in his dead heart - a horrid, unrelenting feeling that made his bones ache and his skin burn -  drowned out all reluctance and urged him to take the leap into the shadows.

 

Seungcheol wouldn’t know if he came back before dawn. The idea somehow blossomed beautifully in his mind, beckoning his acquiescence as he moved to stand on his window ledges. 

 

His eyes followed Vernon as he emerged from the dark, sprinting through the gardens and down a grassy path toward the metal gates. Before he knew it, his own two feet had launched him into the air, and a strong sense of liberation swallowed his entire being. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Welcome to Casa de Solsoon!” 

 

The blond vampire took casual strides across his tiny apartment, picking up a pair of sunglasses and a straw hat before jumping into his bed. “Make yourself at home. Mi casa su casa.”

 

“You tricked me,” Mingyu grumbled, eyeing the sad attempt of a Hawaiian-themed room in distaste. The entire place was chaotically decorated in hand-made pineapple streamers, garlands of plastic flowers, and random tiki warriors plastered on the walls. Joshua would gag if he ever saw the apartment, he thought humorously.

 

“Not true! I merely gave you a suggestion,” Vernon asserted, flinging his orange beanie across the room and replacing it with the straw hat to cover up his messy hair. “That plus, you looked like you needed to get out of there. Pronto.”

 

Mingyu sighed in frustration. He should have remembered that Vernon was gifted. His power wasn’t exactly mind control, but it was a weakened derivative of that ability. He had yet to completely master his gift, but it was strong enough to influence both vampires and humans - a rare and coveted talent that many were envious of.

 

It was understandable that Vernon would be gifted though. His great-great-grand sire was the late Miyavi - the most powerful telepath the vampire world has ever seen. It was a shame he could not pass on the trait to any his fledglings, but then again, that was probably for the best. Their kind had no need for destructive powers that would only fuel endless wars and conquests. That was probably why Miyavi had committed suicide - so none of his brethren could exploit his abilities any longer. 

 

“You can lie down on my roommate’s bed,” the blond offered, sunglass-covered eyes now once again glued to his cellular device. “He’s pretty cool with stuff like that.” 

 

The brunet took a hesitant seat on the aforementioned piece of furniture, cringing at how tough it was compared to his bed at home. “Your roommate’s bed feels like concrete.”

 

“And now you understand me,” Vernon uttered in delight. “My bed’s just as horrible.”

 

A sweet smell started permeating the air, tickling his nose and making his throat go dry. “Why don’t you just buy a better one?”

 

“‘Cuz I don’t want the poor guy to suffer alone. He’s not bankin’ it like we are.” Vernon had always been senselessly empathetic. 

 

“Then why won’t you buy _him_ a better one?” Mingyu wanted to say something about the smell, but his blond friend showed no indication of being bothered by the scent.

 

“I tried to, but he’s a stubborn one. Sent the damn thing back and told me to donate the money to an orphanage. That selfless ass makes Mother Teresa look like Ebenezer Scrooge!”

 

Mingyu was now all sorts of confused. As much as he loved Vernon’s companionship, it was hard to keep up with the newborn at times. “Okay, first of all, I don’t know who either of those people are. Second, we don’t even sleep! Why would you even need a bed?” 

 

“Are you seriously asking me that?” The fair-haired vampire's face twisted into an expression somewhere between disgust and disbelief. “You’re ridiculous, hyung. I’m not answering that question.”

 

The taller vampire didn't understand what was so wrong about his question but decided not to linger on the subject. “Okay, well can you at least tell me what’s so great about that thing in your hands? I know it’s called a cellphone, okay?” He didn’t need more of Vernon’s judgment. Keeping up with a changing world had always been difficult for him. It was surprising enough that he knew what a cellphone was. “Minnie-noona has one, but she doesn’t seem to be as obsessed with it as you are.” 

 

A gentle smile graced the blond vampire’s lips. “This is how I keep in contact with my boo.”

 

“Boo?” His brows knitted at the strange new word. “What is this ‘boo’ you speak of?” 

 

“My boo. Boo Seungkwan.”

 

Seungkwan. Jeonghan mentioned his name in passing three months ago. He was Park Jiyoung’s newest fledgling. 

 

“Why do you call him by his human family name?”

 

“Hyung, oh my god,” Vernon groaned, still typing away at his phone with inhumane speed. “Stop being such a freakin’ old man. He’s my boo, my boyfriend, my lover, whatever you call it. His surname just happens to be Boo.”

 

“And your maker approves of you having a...‘boo’?” Mingyu questioned him skeptically.

 

The younger of the two held a smug look in his face. “Yeah, mother doesn’t mind. She encourages all of us to find someone. Be someone. Do whatever the fuck we want to as long as we don’t get in trouble.”

 

“But how do you show your undying love and allegiance to Yoon Mirae-ssi if you’re giving it to someone else?”

 

“Hyung,” Vernon bemoaned, setting aside his phone and gazing up at his friend. “We will never love anyone like we love our makers, but there is more to life than our devotion to them.”

 

The aroma was getting stronger, making his eyes flutter as it coaxed him into a state of tranquility. Still, Vernon seemed oblivious to the smell.

 

Mingyu shook his head, before absently sinking into the covers and wrapping himself in the tattered quilt. “I have nothing but the love I have for my maker. I am hers entirely. I find it frivolous to waste even an ounce of affection on someone else besides her.”

 

In the era he was reborn in, vampire fledglings were never allowed to consort with others in a romantic way. Only makers - the ancients with their abundant powers - were entitled to those privileges. Fledglings were only allowed to take on lovers or become makers themselves with the permission of their masters. 

 

But with the the new generation came many changes. Traditions were dying out, and rules were being forgotten. His maker, Hara, would never permit such things in her household, and whatever she wanted, Mingyu would always follow.

 

Vernon started slipping into the covers of his own bed, eyes fluttering pleasantly just as Mingyu’s had only a while ago. “It shouldn’t be that way. You deserve to be happy too.”

 

The three hundred year old vampire could see that his companion had finally succumbed to the saccharine scent as well. “Your room smells quite sweet.”

 

“That’s probably coming from my roommate’s bedding. He smells even better in person, and he’s pretty freakin’ cute,” Vernon laughed almost drunkenly. “Oh, and he’s got some cake on him too.”

 

“He carries confectionery around with him?” Mingyu practically slurred. 

 

“What? No. Dude, why are you doing this to me?”

 

The jostling of the doorknob brought both of their attentions to the door, startling both of them out of their repose. 

 

“Shit! Shit! Shit!!!” Vernon cursed loudly, springing out of his bed and rummaging for something in the mini-refrigerator hidden under his bed. “Be cool, man! Be cool!” 

 

Mingyu sat up in bewilderment. He was about to speak before an aluminum juice pouch came flying toward him. Fortunately, he caught it just as it was about to hit his face. “What is going on, Vernon?”

 

“Drink it! I forgot to tell you something!” The blond scampered to the door, placing a hand on it before it could open. “My roommate is human!”

 

Mingyu’s eyes widened in shock, the realization hitting him like a bolt of lightning. “What the hell, Vernon? You’ve lost your mind!”

 

The sweet, fragrant scent swirling in the air had been human blood this entire time, getting stronger and stronger as the human was getting closer to the apartment. How could he have missed it? It was impossible for him to forget the smell of blood. This human had to be an abnormal. 

 

“Hansol-ah!” came the muffled call from behind the door. “I think the door is stuck again.”

 

“Just-just keep quiet, and drink the blood! I’ll explain everything later!” he whispered hurriedly, knowing that his vampire friend would hear him no matter how quietly he spoke. 

 

The brunet hastily poked the little plastic straw into the pouch, sucking in as much blood as he could to thwart the impending bloodlust. He finished the pack in less than five seconds and took one final sniff of the air. “Okay, I’m good.”

 

“Hey, buddy!” Vernon opened the door, smiling so widely it was almost painful to look at. “You’re home early!”

 

Mingyu kept perfectly still as he watched a blue-haired male - dressed in a white, long sleeve shirt and black cargo shorts - enter the apartment. 

 

“I’ve got work in like 10 minutes, and I forgot to pack my food. So I’m just swinging by to grab something to eat,” the human explained as he slung his book bag on the counter and dug through the kitchen cabinets.

 

Mingyu’s grey eyes were fixed on the moving figure, examining him stringently as the two roommates conversed. The human had a very standard asian face with his light complexion, monolid eyes, chubby cheeks, and short teeth. Completely and utterly normal. 

 

But the potent smell radiating off the human’s skin was anything but normal, and it was making Mingyu very, very thirsty.

 

The blue-haired mortal only noticed his presence after stuffing a bunch of instant ramen cups into his bag, and the vampire could only stare in awe as the human’s lips curled into a beautiful smile. “Hansol-ah, is this your boo?”

 

Vernon made a retching noise. “Oh, hell no! This is Kim Mingyu. He’s a friend of mine. Key word - friend. Like a friend-friend. Not a ‘friend’-friend.”

 

“I get it. He’s a friend-friend,” the boy chuckled, stepping forward to shake hands with the immortal sitting on his bed. “I’ve never met any of Hansol’s friends before. I’m Kwon Soonyoung. But you can call me Hoshi if you’d like. It’s just easier.”

 

Mingyu observed the pale tone of the human’s outstretched arm, which was almost as pale as his own icy skin, and grasped at the warm hand firmly. “It gives me great pleasure to meet your acquaintance.”

 

Soonyoung gave him an odd look but grinned nonetheless. “So formal. What century were you born in?” 

 

“Seventee-”

 

Vernon started laughing nervously, moving to stand between the two males and forcing them to let go of each other. “Oh Mingyu, such an old, old, oooold man deep inside. Uhm, he..he grew up with his grandmother. But he’s like…19…like now.”

 

“Makes sense,” Soonyoung commented, ruffling Vernon’s hair affectionately. “Well, I’d love to stick around, but I can’t be late for work again this week.”

 

The blond ushered him to the door, resting a hand on the shorter male’s back to make sure he kept moving forward. “No worries. We’ll catch up this weekend.” 

 

The human turned around to take one last look at his roommate’s friend, beaming at him with a tender expression. “See you around, Mingyu-yah.”

 

Mingyu’s mouth twisted into something that hopefully resembled a smile as he weakly waved goodbye. 

 

“Have fun, kids,” Soonyoung uttered playfully, closing the door behind him.

 

Vernon pushed the bolt forward, locking the door, before sliding down the white-painted wood in relief. “Fuck, man. I thought you were gonna kill him.”

 

 Mingyu leered at his companion. “I am not primitive. I can control myself around humans just fine.”

 

“Dude, your eyes were red,” Vernon pointed out in dismay. “I’m just glad Hoshi-hyung didn’t notice.”

 

“And whose fault would that be?”

 

“Alright, alright. I’m sorry!” His blond companion obtained two more aluminum pouches from under his bed, throwing another one in the air for his friend to catch. “I had no idea he would be coming home. It was my bad.”

 

“You could have warned me before we even left the mansion.” He jabbed the plastic straw into the pouch with perturbed force, willing away the unsettling thirst that craved a taste of the human’s blood.

 

“I didn’t even think you guys would meet any time soon. I don’t really go around telling people I have a human roommate.”

 

“You shouldn’t even have a human roommate in the first place!”

 

“I need friends, okay? It’s hard to make friends in our world...real friends who give a shit about other people and won’t just leave. All I have are you, Wonwoo-hyung, Seungkwannie, and Hoshi. Everyone else is just awful to be around.”

 

Mingyu quietly took a few sips of blood. He understood the loneliness his friend had to deal with. He only had Vernon and Wonwoo, and despite being around his siblings so much, the only thing that truly kept them cohesive was their maker’s commands. 

 

“I didn’t think this was going to happen. I didn’t mean to put you in that awful position. I’m sorry,” Vernon said sullenly. 

 

Mingyu didn’t know what to say. Had he not been taught well by Seungcheol and Joshua, things could have ended quite badly for the human. They were free to drink from humans as much as they wanted to but to kill a human in the process of quenching their thirst was a punishable act. The last thing he needed was for his family to be placed under the scrutiny of the queen yet again. She still had not forgiven their family for Joshua’s crimes.

 

But he knew that Vernon hadn’t meant any harm. His friend may have been careless and naive at times, but Vernon was one of the purest people he’d ever met, filled to the brim with nothing but goodness in his heart. The thought made the bubbling irritation in his veins gradually dissolve into exoneration. 

 

“You are forgiven,” came Mingyu’s reluctant reply after his younger companion began attempting some weird, apologetic version of aegyo. 

 

“Awesome,” Vernon grinned, fiddling with the straw of his drink. “Hoshi’s a great hyung. He’s super chill with everything. He’s fun to talk to, and overall, he’s just a genuinely nice guy. But…I haven’t told him yet.”

 

The brunet glowered incredulously. “About what? About our world? About him living with a vampire? You know we’re not allowed to divulge this information to humans.”

 

“But I like having him around. I don’t want to scare him off, but I can’t just keep pretending to be human either.”

 

“Yes, you can. Either that or he will be killed,” Mingyu reminded him carefully. Any human who discovered their existence was always disposed of quickly and quietly, but only the queen's death dealers were permitted to carry out those executions, and they were not kind assassins. 

 

“No!” the blond cried, face riddled with distress. “No, I can ask mother to change him. Hell, I’ll do it myself if I have to.”

 

“But he has to want the dark gift. You can not impose this on anyone, no matter how badly you want them to stay by your side.”

 

That was how their estranged friend, Jihoon, was born - forced into the supernatural world because his maker had not known any better, and his unnatural change had left him in a physical state of limbo - not strong enough to be a vampire, not normal enough to be human. Not really dead, but not really alive. It was a terrible way to live. Jihoon had been one of the lucky ones though, retaining mental control over his insatiable hunger and bloodlust. Thus, the ancients allowed him to live in spite of his irrevocable situation. Others were not as fortunate (or as unfortunate according to Joshua). 

 

Vernon sighed defeatedly. “If you just get to know him, you’ll understand. You’ll know why I want to keep him.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

Mingyu did not want to get to know Kwon Soonyoung. He did not want to be around his intoxicating smell nor his infectiously warm smile. His strange thoughts were easy to ignore when he was bickering with his siblings and cleaning their home. But once he was alone in the quiet of his room - immersed in serene calm of the dark, his memories of the human would pervade his musings. 

 

He wondered if Vernon ever noticed certain things about his roommate - like the poorly sewn holes in his clothes or the ridiculously over-worn state of his shoes. He wondered if Vernon knew about the human’s abysmal diet, as indicated by the abundance of empty instant noodle cups overflowing in their trash. When his friend had mentioned that Soonyoung wasn’t financially well-off, he hadn’t specified how deep those monetary problems were. 

 

These were only a few of the nonsensical thoughts that ran through his mind day by day.

 

Mingyu may have been an undying creature of the night, son of Selene, and purveyor of life and death, but he too had been human once. He knew of the anguish that mortals had to face each and every day of their lives. Even after his death, empathy still reigned in his deceased heart. 

 

“What are you looking for, Mingyu-yah?” Jeonghan lurked behind him as he scanned their mother’s library for recipe books one night. It was shocking enough that he had found any in the first place, and Jeonghan just had to be a surreptitious bastard at the wrong moment.

 

He immediately turned around, hands adeptly returning the book he’d been reading to its original position behind him. “It’s nothing, hyung. I was just curious about our history.” 

 

He knew he shouldn’t have been lying to his hyung, even though they were not bound by blood. But he could not trust Jeonghan, especially since he was quite close with Joshua, and Mingyu did not want Joshua, of all people, to ever find out about Soonyoung. 

 

Jeonghan remained skeptical. “Our history you say? Through Japanese cooking?” 

 

“I…I picked up the wrong book.” 

 

It was an awful excuse, but Jeonghan seemed to return to his cheerful disposition, replacing the doubtful look on his face with a loving smile. “Okay! Do let me know if you have any questions. I’d be happy to tell you all about our kind’s history.”

 

It wasn’t a bad thing to care for another person and their plights. It wouldn’t be wrong of him to do something to help alleviate their suffering either. 

 

He may not have wanted to get to know Kwon Soonyoung, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t do something nice for the human - cook him a fresh meal, sew his clothes properly, or maybe even change out his dreadful mattress.

 

Seungcheol wanted him to be useful, and that was just what he was doing - being useful to someone in need. At least, that was what he kept telling himself as he snuck out of the house again three weeks later.

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone! So I'm basically a new Carat who's super duper in love with Hoshi! That plus, I just think he and Mingyu have such wonderful, fic-inducing chemistry, and I kinda have a thing for vampire fics LOL. So this is pretty much Mingyu and his teeth's fault. I had to write this for my own sanity. This fic is going to be around 8-10 chapters long, and I'm really really hoping everyone will enjoy it. Please let me know what you think! Comments are very much appreciated.


	3. Chapter 3

 

 

 

 

 

_Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live._

 

_-Norman Cousins_

 

 

 

 

Vernon was to blame for all this. Really, everything that was happening up to this point was because of him.

 

Mingyu had been knocking on the door of his friend’s apartment, mentally rehearsing how he would explain his intentions to do something nice for Soonyoung that night. He didn’t know how Vernon would take it, especially since _he_ was the roommate and _he_ was the one who should have been worrying about the human in the first place. 

 

But when Vernon opened the door, his clothes an absolute mess and panting like he’d been engaged in something vigorous, Mingyu’s plans had ended up in a flop before they could even be executed. 

 

“Not a good time, man!” he exclaimed through swollen lips and dilated eyes before slamming the door in Mingyu’s face. 

 

The blond must have been doing something extremely important for him to act that way, Mingyu thought dejectedly. He would have waited for Vernon to finish whatever he was doing, but the tall vampire decided against it. After all, he was the one who'd been blowing off his friend for so long. Vernon probably already had plans of his own that night.

 

So he turned on his heels and left the apartment building in disappointment, unsure of what he was even trying to accomplish in the first place. Now that he was out of the house and his mind felt clearer, Mingyu couldn’t even fathom why he was involving himself with the human in such a way. It was too self-indulgent to say he was trying to help the human in need. But no matter what he did, all he could ever think about these days was Kwon Soonyoung, and Mingyu couldn’t understand why.

 

He should’ve stayed home like Seungcheol wanted, but then he remembered another reason why he wanted to sneak out that night.

 

It had been a while since he’d walked through Seoul, through beating hearts and neon lights that filled the streets under a darkened sky. Everything was more modern and vibrant now. Ever since the international rise of the K-pop scene, Seoul had never been livelier, and with the music’s newfound popularity came an influx of foreigners. 

 

There was a distinct clash of aromas in the chilly air, languidly fusing and defusing around him as he blended into the crowd. He could smell the alcohol off of drunken breaths and feel the heat radiating from the bountiful mortal bodies surrounding him. 

 

He noticed their staring too, to which he laughed despondently. Mingyu was well aware of how tall he stood, how translucent his skin was, how smooth his hair looked, and how nice his clothes were. These were all things that attracted men and women to him. He was the perfect predator, enticing his unsuspecting victims with wicked subterfuge. They did not know what they were truly looking at. None of them knew what he really was. No one knew that it was not a shining prince amidst their presence but a monster in disguise. 

 

As he walked through the ocean of people, Mingyu felt a tinge of guilt budding in his chest. His self-reproach stemmed from the knowledge of what he was, of what he could do to people, of what he had done in the past. 

 

He would always be thankful for the second life he'd been given, but the burden of his existence took a toll on his psyche at times. He wished there was a different way for his kind to live, for them to feast on something other than humans, but the price of their continuous survival lied in the blood of their living counterparts. 

 

His mother would scold him for thinking in such a way. Hara had always told him that they were above humans and above even time itself, and that at one point, they had attained the level of gods on earth with mortals worshipping at their feet. They never had to hide, and fresh blood came to them like offerings to deities. This was before the great wars between the noble vampire families. When the divide between the east and west powers came, their new reigning leaders had decided it was best to bury their existence in history. 

 

Mingyu couldn’t imagine such a world - one where they did not hide what they were. It was so much easier to conceal such a gruesome truth from the humans - the fact that they were living amongst beings that preyed upon them beneath the moon. It was a sort of protection for their kind. Even though they were trapped beneath a veil of secrecy, their survival was made infallible.

 

That protection allowed him to walk through crowded cities on nights like these, with autumn’s end drawing in closer and closer. These nights gave him a sense of normalcy. They permitted him to relish in the sights and sounds reserved only for those who were sentient - things he could have missed out on had he not been saved three hundred years ago. Even if it were a brief moment, he felt like he was not a killer, and he was once again just a normal boy named Kim Mingyu. Not a vampire. Not a monster. Just Mingyu.

 

As he made his way back to his maker’s estate, a certain scent started wafting teasingly in the air, making his pupils constrict in nervous recognition. He followed the scent cautiously but willingly, his body being pulled in like iron to a magnet. 

 

There, by the corner street behind a Korean BBQ restaurant, the vampire saw familiar slanted eyes and pink chubby cheeks. He slipped into the shelter of the night, watching as Soonyoung carried bags of trash out into a dark alleyway. His breathing was slightly hitched as he hoisted heavy load after load over his head and into the dumpster, frosty blue hair sticking to his forehead from all the sweat. An old lady called out to him from the back door of the restaurant, and the boy quickly rushed in, reappearing outside once again to stack crates beside the dumpster. When he finally finished, Soonyoung took a seat on the steps in front of the exit and leaned back to look up at the midnight sky. 

 

The human’s eyes were glistening in their rich brown color, perfectly somber against the creamy shade of his round face, and his reddened lips parted slightly in speechless marvel at the sight before him. 

 

Beautiful.

 

He frowned at the intrusive thought. The dangerous scent that surrounded the human was starting to mess with his head. 

 

The vampire slipped away quietly to distance himself from the human and his beguiling smell…or at least he thought he did. 

 

“Mingyu?” came the all-too-familiar voice that resonated nothing but sweetness.

 

This really was all Vernon's fault.

 

* * *

 

“Are you sure you don’t want anything? I could get you a slice of cake or some sandwiches.”

 

Mingyu shook his head, shifting uncomfortably in his seat, while the human eagerly scooted closer to him. Although he maintained a straight face, deep inside he felt as though he were going insane from Soonyoung’s delicious scent. It was sending electrifying jolts through his body, ripping through him like a frenzy that made everything seem brighter and clearer. So he buried his nose into his striped turtleneck sweater, arms crossed protectively over his chest, trying to block out the tantalizing aroma.

 

They were in a cutesy coffee shop near the restaurant Soonyoung worked at. It was a cozy little thing with pastel-pink interior and a simple assortment of snacks and drinks. The workers looked like they were cleaning to close up shop soon, which made sense seeing how the place was slowly emptying and the clock was striking close to 1 in the morning. 

 

“We could go somewhere else too if you’d like. Do you wanna eat some noodles?” Soonyoung offered, expression so soft and so fond it made Mingyu’s insides churn. “I don’t need to go to my other job today so we can hang out ’til I go to class.”

 

The vampire gave him a hesitant smile. “I’m fine, hyung. I’m, uhm…dieting.”

 

Soonyoung stopped sipping at his warm tea and pouted. “No wonder you’re so lean. I should probably start dieting too.” 

 

The boy looked down and patted at his slightly protruded stomach, and Mingyu hated how he found the simple action to be so endearing.

 

It had to be the boy’s scent still messing with him and his thoughts. There was something in Soonyoung’s blood that kept rousing his hunger, and it was making it more and more difficult to stop himself from burying his face into the human’s neck.

 

He pondered about it carefully, contemplating whether he should just get it over with to end the torture. All he had to do was lure the unsuspecting mortal into another dark alley and sink his fangs into the tender flesh of his neck. Mingyu wanted to lap at the human’s warm skin, wrap his arms around the boy’s waist, and hear Soonyoung’s moans as his teeth teasingly grazed the crook of the boy’s neck. He wanted to press himself up against the human’s body and feel every beat of his heart as blood traveled through his veins. The boy would take it willingly, because no one could ever refuse their kind. He would remain pliant in a trance like state while Mingyu sucked the living essence out of him, and then he would wake up in his bed the next day, forgetting everything that had transpired the night before while gingerly massaging his sore neck. 

 

It was all too easy.

 

But as he looked into Soonyoung’s eyes, taking in his innocent and expectant gaze, the vampire felt the thirst in his throat dissipate, overpowered by an undecipherable feeling that lodged itself deep in his dead heart. 

 

Mingyu couldn’t do it. He couldn’t harm the human.

 

“I think I should head home, hyung.” 

 

Soonyoung immediately looked crestfallen. “What? But we just got here.”

 

Mingyu forced himself to keep silent. He wanted to take back his words, to tell Soonyoung that they could spend all night together if he wished it. But for some reason, it felt like such a selfish thing to do - to put the human in more danger than he already was. Having one vampire friend was already enough to put him neck deep in a grave.

 

“Do you not like me or something?” the human asked in a small voice, fidgeting with the loosening threads on the sleeve of his worn out jacket. “I mean…I know I’m not as fun as Vernon, but I do wanna get to know you. Any friend of Vernon is my friend as well.”

 

Mingyu remained stone-faced, trying to come up with something. Anything. “I just…my family is waiting for me at home.”

 

“I’ll walk you home then.”

 

Really, the human couldn’t have suggested anything funnier. Mingyu almost wanted to laugh out loud.

 

“I can take care of myself, hyung,” was his curt reply. 

 

He could tell that Soonyoung was trying not to look too disappointed. “Oh…of course you can. Sorry for being so pushy.”

 

Mingyu hadn’t meant to make him so sad. He hadn’t meant to be so rude either, but it was for the best - for Soonyoung’s sake.

 

They both stepped out of the shop just as it was about to close. Soonyoung reluctantly waved goodbye, neither of them relaying any parting words, and Mingyu trudged away without a second glance.

 

The tall vampire took the darker path home - side streets perverted by the lack of morality and light. An intolerable silence engulfed him then, and the darkness and the quiet had never felt more brutal.  His departure felt disturbingly wrong. The waning scent of Soonyoung’s blood brought upon a swarm of affliction in his chest, making him shudder and bite down on his own lips in confusion. His body yearned to run back to the human and drench himself in the boy’s intoxicating scent. Not to consume, but to revel.

 

Was this the reason why Vernon wanted to keep Soonyoung? Did Vernon feel the same way whenever his roommate wasn’t home?

 

There were so many questions blazing through his mind, but they all stopped abruptly when he realized he was no longer wandering in the dark alone. Someone was following him - another vampire. Familiar, but not friendly.

 

He stood beneath a flickering light pole in the middle of a deserted street, red eyes narrowing at the recognizable figure that blocked his path. “Gikwang-ssi…”

 

The ancient vampire - gaunt and intimidating - grinned, his sharp teeth glittering in the dark. “Mingyu, it’s been a while.” 

 

“What are you doing here, Gikwang-ssi?” His eyes followed Gikwang’s movement keenly, as the ancient circled around him in a slow and almost panther-like pace. 

 

“Just paying an old friend a visit, but I heard she’s out of town. Do you know where your maker is, Mingyu?” 

 

“I don’t, and even if I did, why would you need to know?” he snarled. 

 

His mother had many enemies. It was expected. She was the granddaughter of a Vampire King, and she had once held a coveted position, waging wars against other ancients and conquering their lands. It would have been impossible not to make any enemies along the way. Most of them would never dare to lay a hand on their family, but there were those like Lee Gikwang who had nothing more to lose. They were the detrimentals. 

 

“Something is coming, Mingyu. For all of us,” the ancient spoke, eyes reflecting the lunacy of a mad man. “It’s time your mother paid her debt.” 

 

“The only person who owes anyone anything is you, Gikwang-ssi. My mother has been extremely patient.”

 

The man broke into deranged laughter. “Oh, Mingyu, so sheltered even after all these years. You think Hara is such a perfect thing made from the heavens, but she’s not. She is a wretched woman…a vile whore born from the womb of hell!”

 

“Do not speak of her this way!” Mingyu barked at the ancient. “She is a _queen_ , and if it weren’t for Junhyung, she would still be rightfully sitting on her throne!”

 

The mention of Junhyung’s name made Gikwang’s eyes flare in anger.  “My brother…did not deserve to die…” 

 

The ancient vampire grasped at Mingyu’s throat with one hand, lifting him off the ground and choking him. “You are blind! All of you are! You do not know your maker! You do not know her sins!”

 

Mingyu’s hands clawed at the strong fingers crushing neck, desperately trying to release himself from the ancient’s lethal hold, but he did not have Seungcheol’s unparalleled strength. There was no way he could defeat someone as old and as powerful as Gikwang. It would be pointless to even try. He should have ran the moment he realized who was stalking him and reported it to the queen’s death dealers.

 

He gritted his teeth as his diamond skin cracked under the force of the ancient’s deadly grip.

 

“Don’t worry, Mingyu-yah. Your death will not be in vain. This will be my message to her…just a small reminder of what she owes my family.”

 

It was too late then. The smell had hit him out of nowhere, and for the first time in a very long while, he felt crippling fear. Mingyu knew Gikwang had noticed it too. It had struck them like paralyzing wildfire through their veins, bringing both of their minds to a screeching halt. The ancient’s grip loosened just slightly as he turned to look at the source of the menacing scent. 

 

A fist came crashing into the side of Gikwang’s face, the sound of shattering bone deafeningly echoing into the night.

 

“Let him go!” Soonyoung yelled, delivering another punch to the other side of Gikwang’s face.

 

The ancient remained unmoved. The impact of both punches did nothing to hurt him, but Gikwang kept staring at the blue-haired human in bewilderment and shock. 

 

Soonyoung bravely stood his ground despite his futile attacks, vicious rage blinding him from any sort of trepidation. “I said let him go!”

 

Mingyu saw it- the twinge of fear that flashed through the ancient’s red eyes. But what exactly had caused him to react in terror was the mystery. There was no possible reason for a vampire to ever be afraid of a human, but here they were, two vampires cowering from the smell of a boy who was powerless against the undead. 

 

Finally, Gikwang relinquished Mingyu from his grasp.

 

The tall vampire fell to the ground with a loud thud, coughing up blood and heaving from the pain of his fractured neck. 

 

Backing away slowly, the ancient vampire turned to Mingyu, the deep red in his eyes shifting back to a lifeless grey. “You are all doomed,” he whispered, voice exuding boundless pity, before retreating back into the dark refuge of the shadows.

 

“Mingyu!” 

 

The vampire's attention returned to the mortal, hand covering his neck as the cracks healed. His head was filled with nothing but _Soonyoung_ , _Soonyoung_ , _Soonyoung_ , playing over and over in his head. He couldn’t believe what he’d just witnessed. He couldn’t believe that Lee Gikwang had allowed the human to live. 

 

“Are you okay, Mingyu-yah?” Soonyoung fell to his knees, shakily raising his hands to the vampire’s face. But the frightening sight of blood dripping from his knuckles made him stop mid-air. 

 

Mingyu frantically took hold of the human’s wrists. His eyes widened in panic when he realized that the human had broken both of his hands from punching Gikwang in the face. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

“I’ll call Minghao.”

 

That was Vernon’s solution to the problem. 

 

The two vampires stood in the small apartment, peering down at the mortal sleeping in his bed with fretful expressions. Soonyoung shivered violently beneath the two comforters wrapped around his body, a cold towel on his forehead to ease his feverish state. Both his knuckles were on display, loosely bandaged as blood soaked through the thin material. Despite his forced slumber, the human’s face still twisted in harrowing pain. Neither of them had the proper medical knowledge to do anything else to help, since neither of them ever had to worry about these things since they became children of Nox. 

 

“I don’t think we have any other choice. We can’t make him sleep forever,” the blond vampire continued with an aggrieved expression. 

 

Mingyu glanced at his friend. He had never seen the younger vampire look so miserable. “He will ask questions.” 

 

“Let him,” Vernon said solemnly, running his fingertips through Soonyoung’s blue hair. “I'll tell him it was all just a dream.” 

 

“And what will you tell Minghao?”

 

Xu Minghao, well known for his healing gift, belonged to the House of Han Geng - a benevolent vampire older than their ancient makers and former Vampire King of China. Mingyu had only seen Minghao once during a trip to Beijing many years ago, and at no point had they bothered interacting, since they wouldn’t have understood each other anyway. After Han Geng passed down his throne to Zhang Yixing, he moved his entire family to Seoul so he could be with his lover, and his fledglings were eventually forced to learn Hangul. 

 

As far as he knew, Minghao was part of a vastly different circle of vampire friends. But Vernon was an extrovert and probably met the Chinese native at one of his sire’s parties. 

 

“I’ll make a deal with him.”

 

“At what cost?” Mingyu muttered despairingly. 

 

The two friends turned to each other woefully.

 

“Whatever necessary.”

 

Vernon’s answer offered him no sense of assurance. Minghao had no loyalty to them or their houses. The likelihood of him keeping quiet about this messy affair was a huge gamble, but Soonyoung needed the help as soon as possible. A trip to the hospital would raise questions from the humans, but the bill that came with it, on Mingyu’s unused credit card, would only raise suspicion from Joshua. 

 

Mingyu couldn’t even imagine what would happen if Joshua ever found out.

 

As much as he hated to admit it, Minghao was the best chance they had to avoid any sort of reproach from both their families...as long as they could keep it a secret between the three of them.

 

Perhaps Seungcheol was right all along. He really was stupid and useless.

 

“Okay,” Mingyu agreed dubiously, watching the blond nod quietly before bringing out his phone to make the call. 

 

The Chinese vampire arrived less than an hour later looking far from pleased, but he was there nonetheless. Whatever deal Vernon had coordinated with him must have been convincing enough for him to show up. 

 

Minghao was statuesque but appeared incredibly frail with his willowy body. Still, he carried himself like model who’d just stepped off the runway - lithe frame draped in a gold printed Versace button-down and torn white jeans. The vintage copper glasses sitting atop his nose only accentuated the porpoise of his eyes.

 

“Vernon told me everything. You and your brother just can’t stop provoking ancients, can you?” Minghao commented dryly, examining the mortals wounds. His fingers lightly hovered over the broken bones. “But then again, this is the first time I’ve seen a mortal fight a vampire’s battle in quite a long time.”

 

He turned to look at the two friends from where he was seated beside Soonyoung’s bed, eyes narrowing distrustfully.  “What does this human know?”

 

“He doesn’t know anything,” Vernon answered swiftly. “This doesn’t need to become an issue.”

 

“It can be.” The Chinese native gave them both an ill-tempered grimace. “If this ends up becoming a complication, and I somehow get dragged into this mess you’ve made…I will tell my master everything.”

 

“It won’t come to that.” There were many unspoken gaps and vacant holes in Vernon’s promise, but the blond vampire remained steadfast with his claim. “Heal him, and I’ll fulfill my half of the bargain.”

 

“You don’t even have what I want. Do you, Vernon?” Minghao said, placing a cold hand atop the human’s head. He closed his eyes, breathing in the scent of Soonyoung’s blood.

 

Mingyu tensed, both at the vampire’s revelation and his actions, wary of what would happen next. 

 

Foreign, porpoise eyes fluttered under dark lashes, and the gangly vampire abruptly returned to his composed exterior, though obviously disturbed by how he reacted.

 

Next to him, Vernon’s face was a shamble of emotions. With hands clenched at his sides, the blond vampire was trembling. “Please. Please just help him. This was all my fault. I wanted to keep him, and now he is hurt because of our kind. I will owe you this debt for the rest of eternity. Just please, please help him.”

 

Mingyu had never heard Vernon beg before. His friend had always been the cheerful one, untroubled by the world around him and the problems he faced. It tore his heart to see his friend in such a pitiful spirit, and it pained him to know that he’d allowed two people to get hurt that night because he had been a decrepit fool. 

 

It had never been Vernon's fault...

 

“No, this is my fault,” he lamented shamefully. “I did this. I let this happen to him, so I am the one who will forever be in your debt.”

 

Minghao’s fingers trailed down the side of Soonyoung’s flushed cheek, feeling the supple skin in curiosity. They traveled all the way down his exposed neck and landed on bandaged knuckles, slipping underneath the light material to catch a bead of blood. “It would be cruel to leave him in such a state.”

 

The gangly vampire observed the blood on his fingertips, the color of his porpoise orbs unchanging. “There will be no debts between you and me. I came here because of your brother.” Minghao regarded Mingyu with a cautious glance. “The last time I was called to heal someone, my gift had failed me, and yet…Joshua still gave me what I wanted.”

 

The tall male was staggered at the mention of his brother. “Joshua? What do you mean Joshua? What happened to my brother?”

 

“You’ll have to ask him that yourself, Mingyu-ssi.”

 

It was the most disturbing suggestion anyone could have ever given him, but then again, Minghao did not truly know who Joshua was. They did not share the same blood nor did live in the same house. Nobody outside their family really, truly knew what kind of person his winsome brother was. 

 

“So you’ll do it then? You’ll heal my roommate?” Vernon interjected anxiously.

 

“Yes,” Minghao replied, wiping his bloodied fingers on a handkerchief. He flung the silk material over his shoulder, which Mingyu caught questioningly. “Keep it as a souvenir. Hopefully it’ll remind you why we don’t share our lives with humans.”

 

From his breast pocket, Minghao pulled out a jadeite Chinese talon and adorned it on his index finger. 

 

There was a palpable stillness in the air as they watched Minghao insert the sharpened instrument into his mouth, piercing his own tongue. The willowy vampire withdrew it wordlessly, his own blood dripping from the talon, and slipped it through the sleeping mortal’s lips. 

 

The effect was immediate. Soonyoung’s body jerked forward, face wincing in pain, as his breathing quickened into laborious gasps. His bloodied hands clasped the sheets of his bed, pulling hard enough for them to damage the seams.

 

Mingyu watched in horror as the human thrashed in his bed, legs kicking violently and back arching in an unnatural manner. Vernon and Minghao moved to pin him down while his writhing continued, wails of agony ringing through their ears. 

 

All at once, the human boy stopped his unbridled movement. His body plopped onto the mattress, breathing steadying into a calm and quiet rhythm. The agony in his face was slowly replaced by a placid expression, as if he’d been peacefully dreaming this entire time.

 

Minghao tugged at the bandages around the human’s knuckles to reveal perfectly aligned fingers and unbroken, smooth skin. “It is done.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

The news of Lee Gikwang’s sighting eventually reached their mother’s mansion. Jeonghan had friends from the queen’s council, so it was he who informed Joshua and Seungcheol of the ancient’s unwanted return from exile.

 

The eldest vampire of Hara’s family called for a meeting between their siblings and the guests of their house. They all promptly gathered in the library under the glowing light of long candlesticks, the scent of burning wax and parchment in the air. 

 

“We must be more vigilant than ever,” Seungcheol advised them as he sat at the head of the long black table. His gaze landed on Mingyu, face hardened with a glacial expression. “The ancient vampire Lee Gikwang has reappeared. He was apprehended by the queen’s death dealers a few nights ago, but we still don’t know what his purpose was for returning to Seoul...or whether he came back alone.”

 

If Gikwang had been captured by the death dealers, there were only two things that awaited him: torture and death. Unless the queen miraculously decided to pardon the ancient and absolve him of all his crimes, Mingyu doubted he would ever have to worry about Lee Gikwang again. 

 

He couldn’t say the same for the rest of their enemies.

 

“Something is coming…for all of us,” Joshua foreboded with an eeriness that made the air feel sharper and icier. 

 

Mingyu stiffened upon hearing the same words the ancient vampire had spoken just three nights ago, and his brother immediately noticed, watchful grey eyes glimmering in amusement as Mingyu swallowed nervously.

 

Joshua always noticed everything he did. 

 

A sadistic smile crept to his cherry-stained lips. “Then again, that is what Lee Gikwang has been saying for the last one thousand years, and look where we are now. Still feared and still untouchable. We should not worry ourselves over an old dullard’s words. I didn’t mean to scare you, Mingyu-yah,” he chuckled.

 

The tallest vampire in the room scowled irritably, but behind his annoyed expression, there was enormous relief. So far, Joshua hadn’t learned of everything that happened with him, Soonyoung, and Gikwang that night. Mingyu knew his brother would’ve said something by now if he had. The important thing was that Soonyoung was safe, and he intended to keep it that way.

 

“Does this mean mother will be returning soon?” Tzuyu interposed in her feather-light voice, earning an appreciative glance from her youngest brother. She gave him a quick smile in return, before focusing her attention on their eldest sibling once more. 

 

Seungcheol shook his head. “We do not know when mother will be back. It is better if she does not at this moment anyway. These trivial matters are beneath her concerns. That’s what we, her children, are here for.”

 

“Seriously, all of you have some sort of oedipal complex,” Lisa commented, looking down at her black-painted nails in boredom, the rouge pink tips of her blonde hair framing her face gently. “I haven’t seen my maker in three thousand years, and you don’t see me crying over his absence.”

 

“Perhaps this detachment you feel is what made your maker abandon you in the first place,” Minnie hissed malignantly from where she rested beside Tzuyu, the doe-eyed female flipping her ginger hair over her shoulder in a nettled gesture. 

 

Lisa glared at her Thai contemporary from across the table, the pewter shade of her eyes darkening. “My maker _did not_ abandon me.”

 

“Really now?” Minnie jibed, leaning back into her seat and crossing her dainty arms over her chest. “You said it yourself. You haven’t seen him in centuries. He left you in our maker’s care and hasn’t come back for you since. If it hadn’t been for mother’s kindness, she would have casted you out years ago!”

 

“Minnie, Lisa, enough!” Seungcheol roared.

 

Both females immediately fell silent and turned away from each other, quietly seething in their seats. 

 

“We are a family. Everyone in this room, in this estate. We are all that we have right now, so we will care for one another and treat each other with respect,” the eldest asserted, eyes traveling to each of his siblings before once again landing on their youngest brother Mingyu. “We don’t want to lose anyone.”

 

“Well said, brother. Well said,” Joshua remarked flippantly, waving a hand in the air dismissively. “But as I said, there is nothing to worry about.”

 

The auburn-haired male stood up and picked up the last lighted candle in the middle of the table, the lone taper resting atop a golden candelabra. He stared at the small fire in front of him, a bright and burning contrast against the ivory paleness of his seraphic face. “There is only one thing we must fear in our immortal lives. It is not our enemies that lurk in the dark. It is not the authorities that govern our world. It is not even our makers who gave us second life.”

 

“Then what must we fear, hyung?" Mingyu queried, watching the fire dance before his brother’s glinting grey eyes.

 

“Penance,” Joshua stated ominously, before blowing out the candle and shrouding the room in complete darkness. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has read, kudo-ed, and commented on this fic so far. I'm so so grateful to all you guys! Please do let me know how you like the fic and tell me what theories you guys have so far! Like where do you see this fic going? Which character is your favorite? I'm totally loving Joshua in this chapter, but he's been my favorite since I started writing this. The next story after this (tentatively called COE: Savior) will be focusing on him and what his role is in COE: Penance. More Seventeen members will start appearing as the story progresses, and I'm super excited about Jun's character! Anyway, let me know what you think! I hope you had a fun time reading! <3


	4. Chapter 4

 

 

 

 

_Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live._

 

_-Norman Cousins_

 

 

 

 

 

The rest of the year remained uneventful for Mingyu. Even though winter had always been his favorite season, the constant tightness in his chest only bolstered and prolonged his forlorn temperament. 

 

As he wiped down the living room windows for the seventeenth time that week, the tall vampire peered at the snow-covered ground, hoping the sight would evoke any sort of sentiment within him. Sadly, everything was still dull and boring and unpleasant. 

 

There were nights when Vernon would come visit. But ever since he moved out of the apartment he shared with Soonyoung, there had been a conspicuous change in his personality. Vernon was much more sullen now and a lot more serious than he used to be. He still smiled and laughed like he always did but with it, came a hollowness that had never existed before. 

 

They both agreed it was best to never see Soonyoung again. It was in the human’s best interest that they stayed away. Vernon was probably hurting more than he was, but he couldn’t bring it upon himself to tell his friend that he was hurting too. There was no reason for him to even feel any sort of pain, but it was there - deep in his chest, making him ache and bleed like he’d been stabbed by a jagged blade through the heart.

 

Mingyu knew better though. He knew he had to stay away. He could live with the pain if it meant Soonyoung would be safe.   

 

The brown-haired vampire didn’t even bother fighting with his siblings anymore. He did as Seungcheol wanted, staying at home and trying to be as useful as he could be - cleaning the house, doing everyone’s laundry, rearranging their mother’s treasures in the basement. He even renovated the attic to make it a special room for his siblings to use at night.

 

“Mingyu, this is wonderful,” the eldest commented, lips curled in a rare smile as he stared at their new attic in reverence. 

 

Glass panels had replaced the old wooden ceiling, allowing the moonlight to illuminate the entire room in a romantic glow. Hardbound books adorned the black-lined shelves across each wall, all of which were writings from each of his siblings’ favorite authors. Shakespeare, Yuan, Rizal, Vonnegut, Nabokov, Tzu, Faulkner. Mingyu knew each of them by heart. A creamy white sofa, decorated with soft pillows and a micro-plush blanket, laid next to a small Christmas tree in the corner of the room - gold and white ornaments showered all over the green fascicles. Mingyu had chosen a fresh tree to perfume the attic with the distinct smell of pine. It served to bring about a holiday spirit for anyone who entered the room, and blinking Christmas lights in mason jars were scattered around the loft to tie everything together in festive harmony. 

 

There was a mattress with pearl white bedding in the middle of the attic, centered between the glass panels, welcoming anyone to lie down and enjoy the perfect view of the midnight sky. Mingyu could imagine Soonyoung lying there and looking up at the onyx-painted heavens in awe, eyes twinkling like the stars above - the exact same way he did almost 3 months ago behind the restaurant. 

 

The vampire shook his head to block out the radiant image.

 

“What’s with the blue flowers?” Seungcheol pointed to the clear bottle sitting prettily on a white marble nightstand, filled to the brim with fresh hydrangeas from their mother’s garden. “Seems a little out of place, don’t you think?”

 

“No,” Mingyu disagreed, glancing at the frosty blue petals in adoration. His finger poked at one of the blossoms. “They’re perfect right here.”

 

What Seungcheol had said was true though. The attic was filled with whites, blacks, and golds, and with the green Christmas tree already messing with the color scheme, there really was no purpose for something blue. 

 

But Mingyu still wanted the hydrangeas there. “The color brings me peace.”

 

“If you say so,” his brother answered, still unconvinced, but he decided not to dwell on the arbitrary topic.  

 

The two vampires stood in front of each other awkwardly, neither really knowing what else there was to say. Their relationship was the most turbulent out of all their siblings. He and Seungcheol were horrible at communicating with one another, and Mingyu had long been fed up living under his older brother’s constant scrutiny.

 

It hadn’t always been like this though. Mingyu could still remember a time when Seungcheol had been a lot warmer to him, easier to confide in. Back then, he had been a newborn, eager to learn everything about this new, dark world from his brothers. He knew Seungcheol had loved him then, but when their maker discovered that Mingyu had been a failed creation - untrue to what he had been made for, the love his brother had for him vanished like paper set ablaze. Seungcheol had become cold and fiendish overnight, watching over him like a hawk for many centuries, as if Mingyu would one day decide to kill them all. 

 

Sometimes, Mingyu wished Seungcheol would just get it over with and end him. He was not what their mother intended him to be, and therefore, he was of no use to the family.  But Hara still loved him despite everything he could not do for her. Mingyu was still her favorite, and that fact probably irked his eldest sibling to no end. 

 

“Mingyu,” Seungcheol uttered, placing a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “I think I’ve been too hard on you lately.”

 

The brown-haired male was tempted to roll his eyes, but instead, he looked down at his shoes and gently shrugged Seungcheol’s hand off. “It’s fine, hyung.”

 

“I think you should go out tonight.” There was a lightness to his oldest brother’s voice, something Mingyu had not heard in a very long time. 

 

“That won’t be necessary, hyung. I’m fine staying here,” the youngest retorted stubbornly, unwilling to take anything close to kindness from his brother. Not after all these years of unwanted hostility. 

 

“Mingyu… I want you to go out. Maybe you can visit Wonwoo? You haven’t seen him in a while.”

 

“Wonwoo’s still grounded,” he grumbled, suddenly remembering that Vernon had yet to explain how his best friend ended up housebound in the first place.

 

“How about Yoon Mirae-ssi’s fledgling? Hansol.”

 

Apparently, Seungcheol hadn’t figured out that his friend had been secretly visiting him for the past few months.

 

“He’s busy with his boo.”

 

“Boo?” The term was evidently foreign to his brother, just as it had been for him, but ebony-haired vampire seemed to pick up on the meaning faster than Mingyu had. “Then what about going out with Jeonghan tonight? He needs to run some errands, and he won’t mind your company.”

 

“I’ll stay home, hyung. It’s okay,” he insisted, grey eyes narrowing at his sibling's relentless imposition.

 

There was a hint of vexation in Seungcheol’s hardened expression. “ _Mingyu_ , stop being difficult.”

 

“Difficult?” Mingyu scoffed. Of all things his brother could have said. “I’m not being difficult! You wanted me to stay home! You’ve told me to countless of times not to leave the house. What’s so different now?”

 

His older brother’s frown deepened. “You’ve been sulking too much, and it’s bothering Joshua and me.”

 

“Oh, so now I can’t be sad?” the younger vampire rebuked. “Whatever I do bothers you and Joshua-hyung. It doesn’t matter what I’m doing. I just can’t ever please you two! So what do you want from me, hyung? Tell me now so I can stop feeling like I’ll never be good enough for you!”

 

Seungcheol paused, loosening his balled fists and taking in a couple of deep breaths before responding. “We just want what’s best for you. No one ever looked out for us when we were younger. I’m just trying to make sure you don’t make the same mistakes we did.”

 

“But I am not you, hyung, and I am certainly not Joshua-hyung either,” Mingyu stated, the volume of his voice toning down drastically.

 

“I know. I know…I’m sorry.”

 

An inevitable silence wedged itself between them again. It was always either silence or squabbling between them, but Seungcheol had never apologized to him before. The guilt he always felt after their quarrels guzzled his dead heart, and Mingyu finally accepted that, when it came to his family, there was no winning against them.

 

“I’ll go out with Jeonghan-hyung tonight.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

Jeonghan was not the most unpleasant person to spend time with (especially compared to Joshua), but that didn’t necessarily mean Mingyu liked being around him either. There was a reason why Jeonghan and his brother were such close friends. Both vampires shared many malicious traits, and it didn’t help that they had an uncanny resemblance to each other as well.

 

“Mingyu-yah, behave yourself,” the platinum-haired vampire stated in a teasing tone, lips upturned into a devious grin. His grey eyes glistened mischievously - the same way Joshua’s always did, piercing and shocking yet alluring all at the same time. It was even difficult for Mingyu to look away at times. “We won’t be long. I just need to have a chat with one of your brother’s…associates…”

 

They were outside one of the nightclubs that Joshua owned. The Diamond Life was an upscale establishment, catering to both humans and vampires on the wealthier side of the economic spectrum. It was quite an illustrious hotspot for undead customers looking for their next meal, their living contemporaries completely oblivious to the true nature of the club’s patrons. 

 

The two handsome vampires stepped out of Jeonghan’s white and gold Lamborghini Aventador, ignoring the flabbergasted looks that came their way. It wasn’t just the car that had people gasping. The eccentric vampire had insisted they dress poshly that night, and with the way Jeonghan’s all-black, slim fit tuxedo clung to his body, Mingyu knew that both men and women would be watching them all night long. Even though the red suit he was wearing was far less provocative, the lustful gazes coming from the people around them still made Mingyu uncomfortable. If it hadn’t been Tzuyu who’d picked the obnoxious outfit for him to wear that night, he would have never left the house dressed this way. She even styled his hair, parting his long fringe to the side and texturizing it to complete the whole look. 

 

After tossing his car keys to the valet attendant, Jeonghan only needed to wave at the bouncers for them to be granted entrance into the club.

 

The entire place was luxuriously decorated with crystal chandeliers and gold statues of goddesses, and the bar was brimming with different types of liquor from around the world. Red and purple light illuminated the club and perfectly concealed the red eyes of its hungry and salacious clientele. On the dance floor, blue laser lights beamed over the inebriated crowd, bodies slick with sweat dancing to the loud EDM music being blasted by the DJ. Mingyu recognized the redhead at the turntables as Hyungwon, or H.One as the humans called him, a fledgling of the ancient Lee Hyorin. The young vampire was currently one of the most popular disc jockeys in the Korean music scene, so it was no surprise that Joshua would hire him to beat out the other competing nightclubs in their locale. 

 

Beside Hyungwon, there were only two exclusive bottle service tables, and both were accomodating a group of vampires Mingyu typically stayed away from. They were Park Jiyoung’s children - Mino, Jinwoo, Kyulkyung, Junghwa, Bobby, and Doyeon. They were like Renaissance paintings brought to life, the glow of their translucent skin almost ethereal and their faces carved to the paragon of beauty...but there was nothing beautiful in their undead hearts. Park Jiyoung’s fledglings were a vicious bunch, always traveling together and ensnaring humans with their stunning looks. They were spoiled and callous, incessantly causing trouble wherever they went, but because their maker had a place in the queen’s council, their reckless actions were always swept under the rug. 

 

Mingyu ignored the group, as they enticed befuddled humans into their VIP area, and continued following closely behind Jeonghan, brushing off probing hands and invitations to dance. The two vampires weaved through a horde of besotted creatures - humans drunk on alcohol and vampires drunk on blood, all together in a perverted display of lust and gluttony. Jeonghan remained unfazed, but Mingyu was very much disturbed.

 

Finally, they arrived at a more secluded section of the club. 

 

“Stay here, Mingyu,” the platinum-haired vampire said, pushing at the golden curtains covering one of the private rooms. “You don’t want to see this.”

 

The intimidating look in Jeonghan’s smoldering grey eyes sent a chill down Mingyu’s spine. It made him feel sorry for whoever was waiting to meet with his companion.

 

“I’ll be here, hyung,” Mingyu assured him, before the older vampire disappeared behind the curtain. He didn’t want to know what errand Jeonghan was supposedly running. Unlike Jeonghan and Joshua, he had no interest in that sort of shady business. 

 

Sighing, the tall vampire silently observed the dance floor from where he stood. It wasn't as disconcerting to look at from afar, but that was because he was not submerged in the blasphemous throng. A few skimpily clad waitresses came up to him every now and then. Some were offering flutes of blood for him to drink, while others were blatantly attempting to flirt with him. He politely declined each time, instead choosing to focus his attention on the sea of bodies before him, grinding and bopping to the mix of prog and electro dance music. 

 

A heavy feeling slowly settled in the pit of his stomach, making his skin tingle in a strange mixture of excitement and dread. His body felt numb for some reason, and suddenly, the music he’d been drowning himself in felt too loud and the place felt too crowded. His throat started feeling dry, and he knew his eyes were turning red. He was physically succumbing to something, and he didn’t know how to stop it. 

 

Out of nowhere, a certain smell filled his nose - one he knew all too well.

 

Soonyoung was here.

 

Mingyu’s red eyes widened, frantically searching for the human he’d been trying to avoid for so long. The red lights and the sheer volume of people made it more difficult to do so, but his amplified senses filtered out the distractions. It made him thankful for the natural vampire gifts he’d inherited from his mother.

 

The unmistakable frosty shade of blue caught his sharp eyes, and Mingyu felt his chest clench harder in pain. It was bittersweet to see Soonyoung again, even more so in this wretched place. The human boy had his dyed hair slicked back, long bangs out of his face and sweat dripping from his temples, while his brown eyes were harshly lined with kohl. He was dressed in the club’s waiter uniform with a name placard that said ‘Hoshi’, and he was making his way to the bottle service tables with a tray full of bloody drinks.

 

Mingyu rushed to the dance floor, pushing his way through the crowd in an effort to stop Soonyoung from making it to the tables. The club was so dense with people that it helped mask the human’s smell, but once Park Jiyoung’s children caught a whiff of his delicious scent, Mingyu knew it would be game over for Soonyoung. The horrible images played in his mind, sparking a rage that simmered violently in his veins - Mino whispering things into the human’s ear, reducing him to a lifeless doll, his brothers and sisters taking turns biting down on the boy’s neck, draining him of his blood, and then abandoning his dead body on the streets. No, he couldn’t let them do that to Soonyoung.

 

He couldn’t let his kind hurt Soonyoung again.

 

Just as the boy was about to step onto the small stairs of the VIP area, the vampire grabbed hold of his arm, yanking him away and letting the drinks fall to the ground with a crash. 

 

“Mingyu!” Soonyoung yelled, voice overwhelmed by the loud music playing. But the confusion and shock painted on his pale features were quite clear. 

 

The vampire forcibly dragged the human out of the club, growling and bearing his fangs at the bouncers who tried to interfere. 

 

“Mingyu, what are you doing? Mingyu!” 

 

He wasn’t hearing any of the human’s protests and kept pulling at the boy’s arm until they were a safe distance away from the club. When they made it to the front of a closed coffee shop, street quiet and faintly lighted, Mingyu finally let go.

 

“Mingyu, what’s going on?! Why did you do that?!” Soonyoung cried, rubbing at his sore wrist. 

 

The vampire ignored his questions, angrily glaring at the human. “Hyung! Why were you in that club?”

 

A pained expression replaced the unhappiness in the human’s face. “I’m a waiter now. It’s not the greatest job in the world, but it’s a step up from being a dishwater and a trash collector,” he spoke in a small voice, looking away shamefully. “You and Vernon wouldn’t understand. You guys have a home. You have money and families that love you. I don’t have any of that.”

 

Mingyu grunted in annoyance. “Hyung, it’s not about the job. I don’t care about what you do. It’s about the club. Why were you working in that club?”

 

“My friend from uni suggested I work at The Diamond Life. They pay pretty well, and we get to keep all the tips we receive,” Soonyoung explained, and the vampire only felt angrier at his obliviousness.

 

Of course the boy wouldn’t know he was working in a death pit. He probably didn’t even know what he was serving to their clients. 

 

Mingyu observed the exposed skin of Soonyoung’s neck, daring to even entertain the idea that some of the customers had already drank from him before. He would know if they had. His faultless visual acuity made it possible for him to catch even the faintest of scars. As far as he could see, the expanse of the boy’s neck remained unmarred, and Mingyu couldn’t help but feel relieved. 

 

 “Hyung, listen to me. You can’t work at that club anymore.”

 

The mortal’s brows furrowed in bewilderment. “Why not?”

 

“Because it’s-” Mingyu cringed, unsure of how to even convince the boy without sharing too much information. “Because it- it’s…it’s not safe…”

 

The displeasure in the boy’s face melted away quickly, and his hands reached out to touch Mingyu’s face. The vampire flinched at the unexpected contact but allowed the heated palms to cradle his cheeks. His mother was the only one who ever touched him like this, so kindly and so intimately. But unlike her, Soonyoung didn’t know what he truly was, and if he did, the vampire wondered if the boy would ever want to touch him again. 

 

“Mingyu-yah, you don’t have to worry about me,” the human cooed, rubbing his thumbs against the taller male’s unblemished skin. “Clubs have bouncers in case anything happens.” 

 

The bouncers wouldn’t stop vampires from drinking his blood though. They wouldn’t do anything but watch as Soonyoung had the blood drained from his body, but Mingyu couldn’t tell him that.

 

“Hyung, you can’t work there. Please. Not there,” Mingyu implored, placing a cold hand over Soonyoung’s warm one. “Please…”

 

Everything about him was so beautiful and bright, the vampire thought grievously as he gazed at Soonyoung from beneath a lamppost. The human peering back at him was filled with nothing but loveliness and innocence. Every action, every smile, every word - they were all so sublime and awe-inspiring. Of course, there were others far more physically attractive than Soonyoung. He’d seen enough creatures, living and dead, to know that, but somehow, the boy in front of him still out-shined them all. No one could even compare to how wondrous Soonyoung was in his eyes, and it was frightening. It was so very frightening.

 

Despite being a child of the moon for the past three hundred years, there was still one specific thing Mingyu has never experienced before. As far as he and his family knew, he wasn’t even capable of such a thing. But as he stared at Soonyoung’s puffy face, taking in every single detail - the plumpness of his lips, the purple bags under his eyes, the small scar on his cheek - and burning them into his memory over and over again, Mingyu feared that they had all been wrong…

 

“Mingyu…” Soonyoung whispered, breath cold and visible in the air. “Mingyu-yah, what’s wrong? I don’t understand.”

 

…and if they were wrong, that meant Mingyu was more of a monster than everyone already thought he was.

 

“What’s going on here, Mingyu?” A voice startled both of them and had Mingyu throwing Soonyoung’s hands off his face in panic, the loss of warmth leaving an upsetting emptiness in his chest.

 

The vampire knew his offhanded action had alarmed Soonyoung, maybe even hurt him, but now was not the time to feel remorse. 

 

There was a far greater problem at hand. 

 

He turned to Jeonghan, feigning calm under a blank facade. The elegant vampire was casually standing a few feet away, hands in his pockets, and looking at them through half-lidded grey eyes with undeniable bemusement. “Found yourself a snack?”

 

Soonyoung’s cheeks brightened to a deep shade of red, the act somehow making the scent of his blood stronger. There was no doubt that both Mingyu and Jeonghan could smell it now, thick and inviting as it filled their lungs.  

 

“Jeonghan-hyung, it’s nothing,” the taller vampire murmured, watching for any sort of change in the older male’s eyes. 

 

They remained grey and glinting playfully as he turned to the human. “Are you a friend of Mingyu’s?”

 

Soonyoung reddened even further. “Uh, I guess? We met through Han-”

 

“Let’s go home, Jeonghan-hyung,” Mingyu interrupted him coldly, taking a few steps toward the platinum-blond vampire. 

 

“But, Mingyu, aren’t you going to introduce me to your friend?” Jeonghan said through a menacing grin, exposing his fangs as the taller vampire blocked the human from his view.

 

“No, we’re not friends,” Mingyu lied while placing a hand on Jeonghan’s shoulder and grasping it tightly to convey a quiet warning. _Don’t try anything_ , his frigid gaze said.

 

“Oh…I..I guess not,” Soonyoung stated sadly, shivering from a gust of icy wind. “I just misunderstood. I didn't- I mean...I’m sorry.”

 

The human ran back to the club, hurriedly passing them without another word and leaving the two vampires alone once more. 

 

Mingyu’s hand didn’t leave Jeonghan’s shoulder until Soonyoung was out of their immediate vicinity. The older vampire dropped his pleasant grin, eyeing his dongsaeng in disdain, before initiating the walk back to their previous location.

 

“That boy seemed rather friendly,” Jeonghan remarked as they neared his parked car. “What have you been hiding from us, Mingyu-yah?”

 

“I already told you. It’s nothing, hyung,” he muttered, refusing to look at his companion. 

 

Jeonghan silently stretched his palm out to the valet, who promptly placed the car key in his hand and opened the door for him to enter. Mingyu slipped into the Lamborghini as well, taking one last longing look at the club before shutting the car door close. 

 

He had to talk to Vernon as soon as possible. 

 

“Hm…alright then,” Jeonghan shrugged, igniting the powerful engine into roaring life. “That boy smelled really good. I think I want to eat him later.”

 

“You stay away from him!” Mingyu snarled, unable to hold back the animosity he felt for the older vampire insinuating such an atrocious thing.

 

Jeonghan smiled mockingly. “So awful at keeping secrets, aren’t you?”

 

Mingyu internally cursed himself, wincing at how easily the older vampire could rile him up with just a few words. “Hyung, please… let’s just go home.”

 

The other vampire wasn’t going to let him off easily. “Tell me right now, Mingyu. Who is that human?”

 

He kept his lips sealed, thoughts racing. There was no way he could outsmart Jeonghan. He was never good at crafting lies and creating tangled webs of deceit. Those were all in the field of Joshua’s repertoire, and even if Mingyu were as good as his brother, Jeonghan was still a Machiavellian in the game of intrigue. 

 

“If you don’t tell me who he is, I’m going to find out for myself,” the unscrupulous vampire warned him, impatiently tapping his fingers against the steering wheel.

 

They still hadn’t left the parking lot, and if Jeonghan really wanted to, he could drag Soonyoung into the car with them and bring him to Joshua and Seungcheol. His brothers would surrender him to the death dealers, and Mingyu would never forgive himself if they did.

 

“His name is Kwon Soonyoung,” Mingyu finally answered, gripping the sides of his seat. “He works in the club, and I was trying to make him quit.”

 

“Why do you care about this human’s wellbeing?”

 

“I don’t know, hyung.”

 

It was the truth. Mingyu really didn’t know why he cared so much, why he felt so protective of Soonyoung, why he felt like he would die if anything bad ever happened  to the human again. 

 

The car started moving, with Jeonghan skillfully maneuvering the vehicle out of the parking lot and onto the streets. “Does he know about us?”

 

“I’ve never told him anything. He doesn’t even know our kind exists… I promise, hyung.”

 

“You know I have to tell your brother about this, right?” Jeonghan divulged guilelessly. 

 

Mingyu dolefully nodded in return. “I know, hyung, but there really is no need to. Joshua-hyung has more important things to worry about.”

 

“Nothing is more important to him than your safety. He’ll fix this problem.”

 

“But there is nothing to fix,” the tall vampire insisted.

 

“Oh, but there is, Mingyu-yah. Sooner or later, the human will start asking questions, and if he ever finds the answers he’s looking for, what will you do then?”

 

Mingyu weakly sank into his seat, staring out the window vacantly as he felt his strength abandon him. Jeonghan wanted this nipped in the bud, to neutralize the threat before it could become a more serious problem for their family. That was what a smart person would do. That was what his brothers would do…

 

“Don’t worry. Joshua will be kind to him,” Jeonghan reassured him, driving the car through the iron gates of their mansion and down the emerald green trees of the driveway. “He will do it himself. Your human won’t even have time to feel the pain. That’s a much better fate than to surrender him to the death dealers. Joshua would do at least that for you.”

 

…but Mingyu wasn’t Seungcheol, and he certainly wasn’t Joshua.

 

“If you kill him, you kill me,” he muttered almost inaudibly.

 

The older vampire’s eyes narrowed. “What did you say?”

 

“If you tell Joshua-hyung about Soonyoung, I will tell him everything about our kind,” Mingyu continued stiffly as the car came to a halt in front of his maker’s estate. He turned to face Jeonghan with a determined countenance. “I’ll tell him about who we really are, about what we really do, and I will give him the choice to become one of us.”

 

“Your maker will never allow it,” Jeonghan reminded him. “You know her rules.”

 

“I know.” Mingyu smiled bitterly. “She will want him dead…Soonyoung has never done anything to deserve condemnation. It will be my fault if he perishes, so I will leave this world with him when he does. I can't do anything else to save him. Nothing I do will matter from this point on, right? The choice is yours, Jeonghan-hyung. You kill him, you kill me…”

 

The two vampires remained unmoving, the dying engine enveloping them in suffocating quietude. Mingyu was forcing Jeonghan’s hand, compelling him to either keep Soonyoung’s existence a secret or tell Joshua everything and allow Mingyu to die. The death of a sibling was one of the most painful and traumatic things a vampire could ever experience. It was almost as tormenting as losing your own maker. If he were to die, his brothers and sisters would suffer greatly, and Mingyu knew that was the last thing Jeonghan wanted Joshua to feel again. Not after he had to kill Jackson with his own hands.

 

Joshua may not have taught him how to lie, but his brother did teach him how to exploit someone’s weakness, and everyone knew who Jeonghan’s weakness was.

 

The platinum-blond vampire couldn’t help but laugh at Mingyu’s boldness, his words reminding him of something Joshua had once said many years ago.

 

_If he lives, I live, and if he dies, I die with him._

 

Those two - Joshua and Mingyu - were undoubtedly brothers, both harboring the same blood in their veins…and the same fervor that could annihilate kingdoms.

 

“Do you really not know how you feel about this human, Mingyu-yah?” he asked the brunet.

 

The younger vampire shook his head, an inkling of melancholy swirling in his grey orbs. “I don’t, hyung. If I knew, I would tell you.”

 

But Jeonghan already knew, and he was definitely not going to tell Mingyu. This was his retaliation. As cruel as it was, Mingyu was not his brother, and he wasn't going to let the brat get away with using Joshua as a pawn against him. Hopefully, his dongsaeng would figure his feelings out before it was too late. It would be a pity if he didn't, but that was not Jeonghan's problem.

 

 

* * *

 

 

It was almost dawn when Mingyu started banging on the door of Minnie’s bedroom. The slender female opened the door to welcome her sibling in, perplexed as to why he was disrupting her meditation. 

 

Mingyu, still dressed in his ridiculous red suit, gently steered her back into the darkened room and locked the door behind him. “Noona, I need to use your cellphone,” he declared urgently.

 

“What for?” Minnie gave him a quizzical look but proceeded to unlock her phone anyway. She could never deny her little brother what he wanted. 

 

“I need to talk to Vernon,” he expounded, slightly distracted and baffled by the pompadour glitter swimming inside her phone case. “It’s really important.”

 

She placed a delicate, amaranth-painted finger to her chin. “I don’t think I have his number.”

 

“What about Somi or Nancy?”

 

Minnie continued scrolling through her contacts, none of their names showing up. “No…I don’t have theirs either.”

 

“How about Simon? Melanie? Heck, even Tia?” 

 

His sister pursed her lips in contrite. “Mingyu, I don’t really talk to anyone in Yoon Mirae-ssi’s family.”

 

Minnie’s clique consisted mostly of the council’s fledglings - Soyeon, Miyeon, Yuqi, and a few other girls Mingyu had never met before. He doubted any of them would be of any help, but he didn’t have many options at the moment. If he snuck out of the house right now, he wouldn't make it back in time before dawn. If he asked for Seungcheol’s permission to leave the house again, especially so close to sunrise, his brother would only ask an endless bout of questions.  

 

“Do you have anyone on your phone who may know Vernon’s number?” 

 

There had to be someone who did. His extroverted blond friend knew a lot of people. 

 

The ginger-haired female’s face brightened at a specific name. “Well, I do have Xu Minghao’s number. I saw them talking at a party once.”

 

“Minghao!” the male vampire proclaimed joyously. “He’s perfect. Can you call him? Please, noona?”

 

“Okay…” Her voice reflected uncertainty, but she didn’t force him to explain himself. Minnie had always trusted Mingyu enough to know he didn’t need someone looking over his shoulder all the time. He just wished his brothers would do the same.

 

She handed him the phone after hitting the dial button. “I’ll let you have your privacy,” she added with a kind smile before exiting the room. That’s what he loved the most about his sister. She never hovered over his actions.

 

“Wei, Nicha,” the Chinese native answered after just a few rings.

 

Mingyu peeked through the door’s viewer to make sure no one was eavesdropping on their conversation. “Minghao, it’s Mingyu. I borrowed Minnie-noona’s phone.”

 

“What do you want, Mingyu-ssi?” Minghao groaned, not bothering to mask the peeved and reluctant tone in his voice. 

 

“Do you…do you have Vernon’s number?” the tall vampire queried, running a hand through his chocolate brown hair and tugging at the strands in frustration.  

 

“No,” the willowy vampire stated blandly. “I blocked and deleted his number after that little stint you guys pulled a few months ago.”

 

“Look…I know you won’t like this, but I need to ask for another favor. It’s Soonyoung… He-”

 

Minghao interrupted him with a string of indiscernible Mandarin, his angry ranting generously embellished with foreign curse words. “Again with the human! I made it quite clear I wasn’t going to clean up any more of your messes!”

 

“I know…I know.” Mingyu sighed heavily, the stress of the situation slowly eating at him. “Please, Minghao, you need to talk to Vernon. Tell him Soonyoung is working at The Diamond Life. Tell him-”

 

“You’re quite stupid, you know?” Minghao derided before dropping the call.

 

Mingyu gaped at the blank screen of the phone in disbelief. “Hello? Minghao? Minghao!”

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay okay so I'm pretty sure everyone has watched the Holiday MV right? Did anyone notice the SoonGyu moment at the end of the vid? It was super short and subtle and easy to miss but I absolutely loved it! Hoshi and Mingyu were standing away from each while Jeonghan was doing the dance, and they just slowly gravitated toward each other and held hands. Ugh! My OTP, how are you not more popular???? And don't get me started on the Going 17 TTT episode that just came out. The caaaaar. People see HoWoo and Meanie. I only see SoonGyu LOL not hating on any other pairing. I'm just obsessed with Hoshi and Mingyu, and they've been feeding us well HAHAHA. Real talk though, those 2 look like they've always had a very, very, very close relationship. It may or may not be romantic, but you can tell that they care for each other A LOT. There's deliberate fan service and then there's SoonGyu's affectionate interactions that seem so natural for them. 
> 
> But anyway, let me know what you guys think of this chapter! Thank you once again to everyone who's been reading! <3


	5. Chapter 5

 

 

  

 

_Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live._

 

_-Norman Cousins_

 

 

 

 

 

There was no reason for Mingyu to hide in the shadows. Nor was there a reason for him to be standing in the middle of a random street in Jongno-gu, right across a Chinese restaurant called Feng Che. 

 

The snow had finally stopped falling, but the bone-biting chill of the winter remained ruthless. There weren’t that many people outside. Most of them chose to stay in the warm comfort of their homes, ordering food to be delivered to them in lieu of stepping out into the cold.

 

It was closing time for most businesses, but Feng Che was an oddball shop that stayed open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week - always ready to cater to its loyal customers no matter what the weather was like. 

 

The vampire took a step deeper into the dark, quietly watching as a moped parked itself in front of the restaurant. Soonyoung had just come back from a delivery, and the human looked absolutely endearing wrapped up in his thick, navy blue parka.

 

Mingyu was fairly embarrassed at this point. It was not his intention to act like some sort of stalker, but he needed to see for himself that the boy was safe and unharmed.

 

Vernon had told him a few weeks ago that a certain Xu Minghao had paid him a visit at his maker’s house one evening. It was the same night Mingyu had found Soonyoung working at his brother’s night club, and Han Geng’s fledgling had demanded that they go to The Diamond Life immediately. His blond friend had not understood why the Chinese vampire had been so mad. But the moment he saw Soonyoung serving bloody drinks at the club, everything suddenly made sense, and Vernon had been inexplicably horrified. 

 

He somehow eventually convinced his former roommate to quit his job at The Diamond Life and start working at Feng Che instead. There were only humans working at Feng Che, and thankfully, vampires hardly ever frequented that area. It had been Minghao’s idea, since he was actually friends with the human owner, whose life he saved many years ago. But that was a story for another day.

 

The human was about to enter the restaurant, arms filled with empty bowls he'd collected from previous deliveries, but he stopped by the door all of the sudden, glancing in the direction of the pitch black alley the vampire was hiding in.

 

Soonyoung bit down on his lower lip, thinking deeply before speaking. “It’s really cold out here. You should come inside.” 

 

For some reason, it was so hard for Mingyu to hide from the human, and it was always impossible to deny the human what he wanted.

 

* * *

 

"You changed your hair color."

 

Soonyoung's left hand unconsciously combed through his purple-dyed locks, pushing at his voluminous bangs and allowing them to gently cascade onto his forehead. "It'll wash off in a few weeks."

 

They were sitting awkwardly together again, but this time, Soonyoung didn't bother cozying up to him like the one night at the coffee shop. The human instead chose to sit right in front of Mingyu, a steaming bowl of jjampong in between them.

 

"Would you like some?" the boy asked softly as he fiddled with his chopsticks, rich brown orbs refusing to meet ice cold grey.

 

"I'm...still on my diet,” the vampire replied, pushing the bowl closer to the pale human.

 

Soonyoung grimaced, before shoving his spoon into the spicy, red broth almost angrily. "Fine. Suit yourself.”

 

Mingyu watched as the boy heartily and shamelessly scarfed down his meal. There was nothing elegant about the way Soonyoung was eating. He continuously kept slurping at the long noodles, chopsticks cramming enough strands into his mouth to make his cheeks distend as he chewed. Still, his unreserved actions somehow made him look all the more captivating, and he was glad that Soonyoung was now eating something else besides instant ramen.

 

"Ah, hyung." The vampire grabbed a napkin and stretched his hand across the table to dab at the boy’s soup-stained lips.

 

"Stop doing that!” The human protested, slapping Mingyu’s hand away and acquiring his own napkin to stubbornly wipe at his own mouth himself.

 

"Doing what?” he griped, the puzzled look on his face only aggravating his companion even more. 

 

There was a slight hint of pink on the apples of the human’s cheeks. "W-Whatever that…whatever _that_ was supposed to be! Don't you watch k-dramas?"

 

Mingyu wasn’t exactly sure where the conversation was headed, especially at the mention of South Korean soap operas. “I don't, but I believe my sisters do. Why?"

 

Soonyoung groaned, burying his reddening face into his hands. "You just- ugh! Never mind. Just...just stop doing all these confusing things."

 

“What’s confusing, hyung?” the vampire cluelessly retorted. 

 

The human’s grip tightened on his chopsticks. "You say we're not friends, and you act like you care when you obviously don't. All you do is come and go, and honestly, I don’t know what you want from me.”

 

The taller male heaved a sigh, pondering upon the right words to say. “Hyung, I just…I can explai-”

 

“No, you don’t get to explain anything,” Soonyoung glowered with a childishness in his tone. “I don’t even know why you’re here.” 

 

Mingyu leaned forward, a stern expression on his face, as he reached out to put a cold hand over the mortal’s warm fingers. “I’m here, because I do care.”

 

“I told you to stop doing that!” Soonyoung whined, taking his hand back. He turned his flushed face away from the vampire, choosing to look out the restaurant’s glass windows instead. 

 

“Hyung…can you please look at me?” 

 

“No!” the human uttered quickly, pulling his white hoodie over his head, but it still wasn’t enough to hide the redness of his cheeks. “Go home and live your rich kid life. Don’t shame your family by hanging out with poor people like me.”

 

“It’s not about the money, hyung,” Mingyu lamented, massaging his temples to ease his frustration. 

 

This was going to be much harder than he thought.  

 

“I don’t care about that stuff, hyung.”

 

The human snuck a pointed glance at him. “Then why didn’t you want to introduce me to your brother _that night_?” 

 

That night. 

 

Memories of _that night_ flooded into his mind, reminding him of the unadulterated ignominy he felt for his own incompetence.

 

Mingyu stared back at the boy despondently, holding back everything he wanted to say behind clenched teeth and tightened lips.

 

_Because I was so afraid._

 

_Because I was a coward._

 

_Because I didn’t want to see you get hurt again._

 

_Because I know I’m not strong enough to protect you…_

 

There were too many conflicting emotions rattling through his chest, each of them grappling for a sense of identity within his dead heart. It was all overwhelming and confusing and yet somehow, strangely familiar and comforting at the same time. For someone so dead inside, the feelings Mingyu experienced whenever he was around the human made him feel so dreadfully alive. They were magnificent, but they were also pestilent, coaxing him say and do things without logic, without care for the destruction that would come from his idiocy. 

 

He was used to being dead and feeling dead. He was used to being a heartless monster. 

 

But Soonyoung made him feel like Kim Mingyu again…the Kim Mingyu that died three hundred years ago.

 

The boy eased his fiery gaze upon witnessing the desolation in the vampire’s face. “His…his name was Jeonghan, right?” 

 

Mingyu licked at his lips, pausing to peer at the human’s beauteously flushed face, before finally allowing himself to speak. “Jeonghan-hyung is not my brother. He’s more like…a distant cousin.”

 

The human brought his legs closer to his chest. His covered arms wrapped around them to keep himself steady, feet pressing against the seat’s edges. “Oh…I just thought- well, you guys have the same eye color.”

 

“It’s from my mother’s side of the family.” Mingyu wasn’t exactly lying, but now he understood the struggle Vernon had to go through while interacting with the human. There was only so much he could say without context before he had to disclose more and more information about their kind. 

 

“You’re lucky to have such a nice eyes then. They’re really…pretty,” the human confessed, gaze dropping to the empty bowl in between them. 

 

Mingyu felt baffled, brows knitting together. The compliment had not sounded right at all. How could a human say that the soulless eyes of a monster were…pretty? It was all wrong. His dull, grey orbs were nothing compared to the boy’s shining brown gems, and he needed Soonyoung to know that.

 

“They’re not as beautiful as yours,” he stated truthfully, leaning in even closer to brush away a strand of Soonyoung’s hair falling into his eyes.  

 

The human’s turbulent expression instantly morphed into aghast. “Mingyu!”

 

Soonyoung pushed at Mingyu’s hand and shot up from his seat. “You need to stop this right now! If you keep doing this, I might…” 

 

Sadness consumed his pallid features as his voice wilted into a weak murmur. “I just might fall-”

 

The sound of the restaurant door opening disrupted the boy’s words, distracting him from what he was about to say. He looked up to see who had entered the restaurant, and his face immediately brightened at the person’s arrival. 

 

Mingyu instantly felt appalled upon turning around to see who it was. “Minghao?!”

 

The gangly vampire, dressed in a turquoise Balenciaga windbreaker and acid-washed jeans, offered him an unpleasant scowl in return. “What are you doing here?”

 

“You two know each other?” Soonyoung interposed, taking meek steps toward both vampires. 

 

Two pairs of undead eyes looked up at the human. 

 

“Regrettably so,” Minghao answered spitefully, appearing just as displeased as he sounded. He stepped towards the mortal and snaked an arm around Soonyoung’s shoulders, pulling the boy closer to his side. “Come on, Hoshi-hyung. Let’s ditch this loser.”

 

The human didn’t shrug the Chinese vampire’s arm off like Mingyu had hoped he would. Instead, he playfully flicked the lanky male’s forehead and scolded him. “Yah! That’s mean! Don’t say that to Mingyu!”

 

Minghao simply chuckled, porpoise eyes gleaming with so much happiness behind a set of red-tinted lenses. It was the first time Mingyu had seen Han Geng’s fledgling smile like that, and it was almost disturbing watching the Chinese vampire and the human interact so affectionately with one another. 

 

“Okay, hyung. I won’t do it again.” His face was deadly close to Soonyoung’s, close enough that their lips were mere inches away from a kiss, and the thought made Mingyu's grey eyes smolder dangerously.

 

“I’m sorry, Mingyu.” The human turned to him with an apologetic smile, hardly noticing the Chinese vampire smirk as he pulled the boy even closer to his body. “I’m still teaching this brat how to be less catty.”

 

The tall vampire glared at his undying contemporary. “It’s fine, hyung,” he coerced himself to say, a devious idea forming in his mind. “Minghao and I are actually friends with Vernon. We’re hanging out together _tomorrow night_.”

 

Minghao’s expression soured, but he didn’t say anything to object to the lie. He knew what Mingyu was insinuating. After all, they _did_ need to talk about a lot of things. 

 

Soonyoung was completely oblivious to the murderous tension between the two vampires.“Hansol? I miss him so much!” he remarked giddily. “Tell him to call me soon. Oh, and send me pictures, Hao Hao!” 

 

“Of course, hyung,” the Chinese native said, eyes unyielding as the two vampires continued scowling at one another. 

 

“We’re going to have so much fun,” Mingyu added, barely obscuring the sarcasm in his voice.

 

* * *

 

“What are you guys doing here?” Vernon asked when he greeted the two vampires standing at his door. 

 

The blond was yet again donning his usual, questionable fashion choices - pairing together an asymmetrical blue and red crewneck sweater and yellow plaid sweat pants with a grey wool bucket hat. 

 

“You didn’t tell him?” Mingyu glowered at the Chinese native beside him.

 

Minghao, still visibly perturbed by the odd selection of expensive apparel in front of him, sharply turned to the brunet. “Aren’t you his friend? You’re the one who should’ve told him.”

 

“I don’t have a cellphone!” he retorted angrily at the foreign vampire.

 

Minghao rolled his eyes and sneered. “You’re such an idiot.”

 

“You look like a long-headed grasshopper!” Mingyu jeered back at him, making a disgusted face at other vampire’s ridiculous green suit. “Who dresses up in Burberry to look like an insect?”

 

The offended look on Minghao’s face almost had him roaring in laughter. “Well, you look like a part-time employee who can’t afford a decent wardrobe.”

 

Mingyu looked down at the grey sweater Tzuyu had knitted him for Christmas, enraged by the other male’s insolent comment. “You are absolutely repugnant!”

 

Neither of them were paying any heed to Vernon. The blond remained still in the background, honey-tinted eyes staring up at the heavens, wondering what he had done to be in the middle of such ridiculous squabbling.

 

“You’re a weak vampire who can’t even take care of a human. I’m doing a better job at keeping him out of trouble than you are!” 

 

Mingyu knew what the Chinese vampire had said was true, but that didn’t mean he liked hearing that truth one bit.  

 

“Why do you even care? You were the one who kept telling us not get involved. _We don’t share our lives with humans._ Remember, you hypocrite?” Mingyu pulled a silk handkerchief from his back pocket, the material still stained with Soonyoung’s blood.

 

Minghao yanked it away from the taller vampire’s outstretched hand and growled, “I wouldn’t have involved myself with Hoshi-hyung, if you hadn’t been an idiot in the first place!”

 

Mingyu bared his sharp fangs and snarled back. “So you think you’re some saint now?!”

 

“If saints stop humans from getting killed, then yes, I am a saint, and you’re the demon that won’t stop plaguing Hoshi-hyung with death!”

 

Deep, blood red quickly replaced the wintry grey in both vampire’s eyes. Just as they were about to start lashing out at one another, Vernon stood in between them, holding his arms out to stop them from physically hurting each other.

 

“Okay, guys, that’s enough. Calm down!” he intercepted, tired of the two vampires bickering like toddlers. “I guess since y’all are here, we might as well head out now. There’s someone who wants us to visit him.”

 

“And who might that be?” Minghao asked banally, readjusting his round-framed glasses on the tip of his nose.

 

The blond vampire grinned. “Mingyu’s best friend, Jeon Wonwoo.”

 

* * *

 

Wonwoo lived in a rather strange area in Seoul. It was strange to Mingyu, because most vampire families chose to live in the wealthier and more modernized parts of the city. Wonwoo’s family, however, resided in the Bukchon Hanok Village.

 

“It makes father happier,” Mingyu’s best friend had once said about his maker, the ancient and wise Hwang Minhyun. “Change has always been unbearable for him. The houses here remind him of simpler times…back when he was still human in the Joseon Dynasty.” 

 

Mingyu did not know much about his best friend’s master, but he did know that the ancient had turned Wonwoo into his fledgling out of desperation. 

 

Some four hundred years ago, Minhyun had found Wonwoo one night, then still human, starving to death in a cramped prison cell. The young boy had reminded Minhyun of his own brother, who had succumbed to death from a famine during one particularly harsh winter.  

 

Vampires were never good at being solitary creatures, and by making Wonwoo his fledgling, the ancient vampire had hoped he would gain a quiet companion to spend the rest of his life with in peace - someone who could efface the loneliness that plagued him after the loss of his brother.  

 

Although Wonwoo was very shy out in public, beneath his phlegmatic exterior lied overflowing and vicious rage. One wrong move, one wrong word would have Wonwoo spewing out curses and instigating fights with those who’ve infuriated him. He was a handful to deal with for a pacifist like Minhyun, but the ancient loved his fledgling like no other, always protecting his child from anything and everything no matter what the circumstances were. He even refused to create more children just so he could dote on his perpetually irritable son, never getting tired of caring for Wonwoo even after all these centuries. 

 

Despite his best friend’s irate temperament, he and Mingyu have surprisingly never had a fight. They were just unexpectedly compatible, establishing a connection right after meeting one another and discovering similar interests as their friendship grew. Minhyun had once thought they would eventually become lovers, but no romantic feelings ever blossomed between them. Mingyu had always seen Wonwoo as a close friend, maybe even a long-lost brother, but never as an amorous prospect.

 

“Wonwoo!!!” Mingyu called from outside his best friend’s hanok. “Jeon Wonwoo, open the door!”

 

The wooden door immediately slid open, revealing Wonwoo in his raw form - unkept hair, pink ahjussi pajamas, and plush strawberry slippers - a very different look compared to when they spent time together outside. His best friend was an astoundingly handsome vampire, but he did not care for appearances when he was home. 

 

“Finally!” Wonwoo shouted, grabbing Mingyu by the collar and roughly pulling him into a hug. “You sad motherfucker, took you long enough to get here!”

 

“I missed you too, Beanie-hyung!” the brunet replied, grinning as he squeezed his best friend’s skinny body, hard enough to crack the other male’s back. “I heard you messed someone’s face up!”

 

Wonwoo shoved him off, twisting his torso to alleviate the remaining pressure. “I did! That son of a bitch had it coming though!”

 

“Hey, maaaan!” Vernon beamed, wrapping his arms around Wonwoo and patting him on the back, before gesturing at Minghao. “This is Xu Minghao from the House of Han Geng. He’s a new addition to the crew.”

 

The gangly vampire grumbled at the same time Mingyu made a cross expression. “Uhm, no, I’m here because I still need to take pictures for Hoshi-hyung.”

 

“Hoshi?” Wonwoo asked, peering at the lanky newcomer questionably. “Who’s Hoshi?”

 

“We’ll explain later, man.” Vernon hooked an arm each over Mingyu and Wonwoo, tiptoeing slightly since they were both taller than him. “The gang is all back! Glad your homebody days are over, Beanie!”

 

Their friend made a grunting noise in the back of his throat, rolling his eyes in indignation. “They’re not. I’m still stuck here ’til next winter.”

 

“What?!” Both Mingyu and Vernon cried in unison. 

 

“Yeah, next winter,” Wonwoo bewailed, scratching at his messy head of jet-black hair. “I couldn’t believe it either. Father was never this strict. He even _commanded_ me. Could you believe that?”

 

He ushered his three guests into the hanok, giving each of them plush slippers to use instead of going barefooted around the cozy house. 

 

Minghao stared longingly at the plush carrot slippers swallowing his feet. "Where did you buy these?”

 

Wonwoo cocked his head to side. “I got those from an old friend. Jihoon-hyung.”

 

“Let me have his number so I can obtain a pair from him as well.”

 

The three friends turned to each other uneasily.

 

“Jihoon-hyung hasn’t contacted us in a very long time,” Vernon explained, honey-grey eyes glossing over with unspoken woe. 

 

Wonwoo guided them to a small table in the modestly decorated living room. “It was good while it lasted. Jihoon was fun despite him being…you know, a variant. Not really vampire, not really human.”

 

Minghao raised his brows at the three vampires. “You were all friends with a variant? That’s certainly unheard of.”

 

“We never judged,” their blond friend said, taking off his bucket hat and smoothing down his hair. “He was a great friend, but he started distancing himself after a while. Until one day, he just stopped hanging out with us.” 

 

“Hmmm, it must have been hard for him.” The foreign vampire carefully hung his green blazer on a hook beside the entrance. “To spend so much time with vampires who were whole…it must have been painful.”

 

Wonwoo and Vernon nodded in understanding, while their tallest friend seemed a bit distracted by his musings.

 

“Where is Hwang Minhyun-ssi?” Mingyu inquired as they sat on floor cushions, their long legs bumping into each others’ beneath the table. 

 

“Father said he was going on a short vacation. He never said I couldn’t invite anyone over, so I called Vernon the moment he left,” Wonwoo answered, leaning back on his stretched out arms. “Why’d you ask?”

 

A frown tugged at the brunet’s lips. “My maker is also taking a short vacation at the moment.”

 

He then regarded his blond friend. “Didn’t you mention that Yoon Mirae-ssi is also gone?”

 

“I did. Mother left with Jungkwon a little while back,” Vernon agreed. “What’s going on, man?”

 

“Hold on,” Mingyu said, before facing the Chinese native with a grim expression. “Do you know where Han Geng-ssi is, Minghao?”

 

The foreign vampire slowly shook his head. “Like your maker, he did not say where he was going…”

 

“Why are they all gone?” The tallest vampire in the room could not release his troubled disposition. “Why would the queen let them all leave the city at the same time? She does not have enough death dealers to protect the throne, so why would she allow her allies to weaken her defense?”

 

“Is there even a need for a defense at the moment?” Wonwoo asked. “No one has tried to invade Seoul for centuries. Queen Seolhyun has held her position longer than any other vampire queen ever has.” 

 

“It still doesn’t make sense,” Mingyu pointed out, his attention once again returning to Vernon. “Remember the night Lee Gikwang came back?”

 

“Who could forget that night, man?” the blond huffed, placing a hand over his closed eyes. “That night was horrible.”

 

“It was a nightmare,” Minghao remarked, his displeased glance aimed at Mingyu. “I still can’t believe Hoshi-hyung survived after that encounter with Lee Gikwang.”

 

“I know about Lee Gikwang coming back. That news spread like wildfire through Seoul.” Wonwoo hunched over the table, his forearms propping him up. “But who the hell is Hoshi?”

 

“A boy your best friend over here is obsessed with,” the Chinese vampire goaded, a palm tucked underneath his chin.

 

“I am not obsessed with Soonyoung-hyung,” Mingyu clarified as calmly as he could, despite wanting to strangle the Chinese vampire to shut him up. “I just don’t want him to get hurt again after that incident with Gikwang-ssi.”

 

“Hold on! Back up again. I’m still out of the loop here,” Wonwoo groused. “What happened between this Hoshi guy and Lee Gikwang?”

 

Mingyu let out a groan before explaining. “I ran into Gikwang-ssi in the middle of the night. He was going to kill me and…I don’t know if Soonyoung-hyung was following me or just happened to be passing by the same area, but he saw. He saw Gikwang crushing my neck, and he tried to save me…”

 

“Pretty much decked Gikwang right in the mug,” Vernon quipped, looking at Wonwoo with a hint of amusement in spite of the dejection in his eyes. “I guess that’s one thing you guys have in common.”

 

“I like him already!” Wonwoo roared, breaking into obnoxious laughter as he draped an arm over the back of his best friend’s neck. “That son of a bitch got what he deserved! Nobody messes with my boy Mingyu! When am I meeting this Hoshi-hyung?”

 

“I wouldn’t recommended it,” Minghao stated, switching his glares between Mingyu and Vernon. “Not after everything he’s had to deal with since he met these two idiots.”

 

Mingyu was about to say something in retaliation, but Wonwoo beat him to it, leering at the lanky foreigner. “Watch who you’re calling an idiot, you skinny ass grasshopper!”

 

Vernon put a hand up to Wonwoo, brows furrowed with deep sullenness. “He’s right. After the shit that happened with Gikwang, we really shouldn’t be messing with his life anymore. Minghao’s kinda watching over him for a bit. It’s the least we could do after everything that’s happened.”

 

“So you’re telling me someone saved my best friend’s life, and I don’t even get to say ‘thank you’ to him?” Wonwoo asked incredulously. 

 

“Hoshi-hyung did more than save his life. Basically, your idiot best friend here let a human fight his battle for him,” Minghao added haughtily. 

 

Wonwoo’s eyes widened in shock and disbelief. “A human?! Mingyu?!”

 

The tall vampire winced, turning to his friend guiltily. “I know what you’re going to say, hyung. I promise, I’m trying to stay away.”

 

“You say that, and yet, you still can’t leave him alone,” the Chinese vampire commented venomously. 

 

Mingyu no longer had anything to say to refute his claim, because since the beginning, there was only absolute truth in Minghao’s every word. 

 

Thankfully, Vernon spoke up to ease the tension in the small room. “I don’t blame Mingyu. He misses Hoshi-hyung, and I do too.” 

 

Wonwoo eyed his two friends vigilantly, unable to comprehend the devastation in their faces. He was never the best at dealing with emotions, and it was even harder dealing with someone else’s grievances, especially Mingyu’s - his best friend, the second most important person in his life. Years of suffocating oppression from his brothers had slowly taken the light out of his eyes, leaving him brooding and bitter and scarred, and it was painful to continue watching the grief consume his precious friend day by day.  

 

Growling in frustration, he looked to Minghao, who simply stared back at him with apathy. “What must be done?”

 

“They have to stay away. For good,” the lanky vampire instructed. 

 

Wonwoo observed Mingyu, chest tightening at the familiar hollowness that corrupted the tall vampire’s face. “Would that be for the best?”

 

No, that wasn’t the right question. 

 

“Would that make you happy? Mingyu?” he corrected himself before anyone could reply.

 

The brunet barely lifted his head, smiling forlornly. “Of course it wouldn’t… if I could be happy…if I could, I would stay by Soonyoung-hyung’s side each and every day.”

 

That answer was enough for Wonwoo to finally understand. 

 

“Then why the fuck aren’t you doing that?”

 

“We just had an entire conversation about this!” Minghao hissed, hand slamming against the wooden table.

 

Wonwoo ignored the Chinese vampire. “Mingyu, all you’ve ever done is please other people. When are you finally going to do something that makes you happy?”

 

“My happiness is not worth the pain of others,” his best friend murmured weakly, tears welling at the corner of his eyes. 

 

“Whose pain? Your brothers’? Your mother’s?” Wonwoo seethed, grabbing hold of Mingyu’s chin and forcing him to look up. “If they really love you, they wouldn’t stand to see you like this. We’re not even blood-bound, and I hate seeing you so fucking depressed! I’ve always hated it!”

 

Vernon grimaced, breathing deeply before adding, “I’ve always hated it too, and I’ve always wondered when I’d ever get to see you happy…truly happy...”

 

The tallest vampire simply chuckled sadly. “This is more than just me. This is about Soonyoung-hyung and his life. It’s all my fault… he never asked for this…”

 

“He didn’t…” the black-haired vampire whispered. “But you didn’t either. So stop blaming yourself for everything.”

 

“If Mingyu doesn’t stay away, Hoshi-hyung will die,” Minghao fumed, glaring at the two best friends with great discontent. “You know it, and _he_ definitely knows it.”

 

Wonwoo shook his head. “This human we keep talking about, Hoshi…Soonyoung. If you want to be with him…if he really is that special to you, find a way. There’s always a way, Mingyu. Didn’t Joshua teach you that?” 

 

* * *

 

There was no reason for Mingyu to hide in the shadows. But there was a reason for him to be standing in the middle of a random street in Jongno-gu, right across a Chinese restaurant called Feng Che. 

 

Soonyoung stepped outside the restaurant, glancing warily in the vampire’s direction. The tall brunet stood beneath a lamppost, unobscured by the cruel darkness of the night surrounding them. He was dressed in a brown trench coat, looking handsomely long and tall with his hair brushed to the side. His shining grey eyes remained unhindered by any sort of consternation as he walked toward the human.

 

This time, he wasn’t hiding anymore.

 

“Mingyu? What are you doing here?” the human asked, cheeks filling with pink as he wrapped his navy blue parka tighter around himself. 

 

A single violet orchid emerged from behind his back, carefully grasped in his right hand - the fruit of tending to his mother’s garden for decades. It was the exact same color as Soonyoung’s strikingly vibrant hair.

 

Their fingers touched briefly as the boy accepted the orchid. “What’s this flower for?”

 

A fond smile quietly graced his lips. Mingyu bent down, placing an alabaster hand on the human’s warm and rosy cheek, and whispered into Soonyoung’s ear. 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. I love SoonGyu! This pairing is just so beautiful. Half way through the fic, and let me just tell you guys, I've really been hustling trying to crank out the chapters. The holidays have been distracting me from writing, especially since my job doesn't really have the needed manning power to operate. So basically, more work for me and less time to write. Like, I have to come in even on my days off (no extra pay) and I can't say no because I'm under a contract.
> 
> It really makes me sad since I want to finish this up so I can work on the next two COE stories. The third one will pretty much wrap up all the loose ends and explain what Hoshi is, but it's also going to be the most difficult to write with the way I have the story in mind. Oh and unless I can make DK fit better into COE 3, I might have to make a fourth story in between COE Savior and the third COE fic. It's going to be about how Hoshi and DK met and how they fit into the story. Hopefully, I can make it into a one-shot, but COE was also supposed to just be a one-shot so good luck to me *sighs*. This COE universe keeps growing and growing and now I kinda wanna do a crossover between SVT and BTS, because V and Joshua. Joshua and V. Sneaky sneaky Josh doing bad things with V. Ever wonder why Josh never leaves the house? All will be revealed in Savior!
> 
> Besides COE, I also have another fic in mind. Hanahaki and Vocal team Un Haeng Il Chi inspired. Still SoonGyu of course, but shamelessly smutty and rated R and sad cuz when is a Hanahaki fic ever not sad?
> 
> Also, I need your help, guys! I pretty much know what pairings I want for COE, but I'm not sure about this one - Wonwoo/DK or Wonwoo/Dino????? Let me know what you guys think! Thank you once again to everyone who's been reading!


	6. Chapter 6

 

 

 

 

_Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live._

 

_-Norman Cousins_

 

 

 

 

The rustling of the door barely disturbed Mingyu from the endeavor he’d been tackling for the past hour and a half. 

 

Turning off the stove, the vampire sauntered to the small dining table beside the kitchen and laid a freshly made plate of tonkatsu down next to a bowl of rice. 

 

“Mingyu-yah! Have you been cooking this entire time?” came Soonyoung’s worried voice.

 

The tall brunet looked up from setting up the table, watching as the human hurriedly removed his winter coat, and smiled softly. “Hyung…I told you I don’t mind cooking.” 

 

Although he hadn’t cooked a single meal in the past three hundred years, it was a simple enough task for him to quickly re-learn. Thanks to the Japanese cookbooks in his mother’s library, Mingyu had successfully created several dishes for Soonyoung to feast upon for the past few days. It was his personal mission to keep the human so well-fed that he’d never have to buy another instant noodle cup again.

 

“It does smell really good.” The human bit his lower lip, slipping into the rickety dining chair right in front of the food. “But I’m guessing you’re not eating with me?”

 

Mingyu gave him a terse nod. “I have to head home in a bit, hyung. I just wanted to make sure you had real food before I left.”

 

He glanced at the Attack on Titan clock on the wall, a small wave of anxiety rippling through him. It was already four in the morning. Soonyoung’s new apartment in Jongno-gu was a lot farther from their maker’s estate, and it would take at least 30 minutes to get there even with a car. If he wasn’t home by five, Seungcheol would burn through Seoul looking for him. 

 

“Mingyu, you’ve already stocked my fridge with at least a month’s worth of food!” The human’s cheeks were heavily stained with a vicious shade of red. “I’m going to gain so much weight if you keep feeding me like this!”

 

The vampire chortled lightly, brushing a hand through the boy’s soft hair and admiring how the strands had faded into a dulcet, lilac shade over the past few weeks. “I won’t care as long as you’re healthy, hyung.”

 

“Stay with me for a bit longer?” Soonyoung pouted, grabbing hold of Mingyu’s sleeve.

 

Of course, he wasn’t going to say ‘no’. Mingyu moved his hand over Soonyoung’s, briefly entangling their fingers before letting go. He sat across the human, earning a wondrous smile from those warm pink lips, and picked up a pair of chopsticks.

 

“I’m sorry for coming home so late. Hao Hao and I were really getting into this new dance we choreographed.”

 

Mingyu retrieved a piece of the breaded pork from the plate, smearing it with a bit of sweet sauce, before reaching over to place it inside Soonyoung’s awaiting mouth. “You’ll let me watch you dance soon, right?”

 

The human struggled to answer with his full cheeks, humming as he chewed diligently. After swallowing, the boy grinned widely. “Keep cooking like this for me, and I'll dedicate an entire performance to you!”

 

The vampire laughed, placing some of the fried meat on top of the human’s bowl of rice. “I want to see you dance, even if I have to watch that ignoramus dance right next to you.”

 

“Mingyu! Hao Hao’s just not that great around other people, but he’s actually really, really nice once you get to know him!”

 

“I’d prefer not to, hyung. Get to know him I mean.” he answered grimly, internally cringing after recalling how revoltingly blunt and debasing the Chinese vampire was. 

 

The human continued digging into his meal, delightfully muttering endless praises for Mingyu’s cooking prowess as best as his meat-filled cheeks would allow him. 

 

Mingyu couldn’t help but smile the entire time. His dead heart was swelling with so much tenderness and joy from just staring at the opulent mortal before him - this person who was beyond perfection, beyond any sort of limiting definition. Mingyu never knew such a person could exist. 

 

“Mingyu-yah…I was wondering about something,” he said softly, just as the vampire was about to fetch him more cold green tea to drink.

 

“What is it, hyung?” 

 

The human looked away shyly. “I want you to meet a friend of mine…if…if that’s okay?”

 

Mingyu’s smile immediately fell from his lips. Soonyoung noticed it, and sheer panic quickly doused his jovial expression.

 

“I…I mean he…Woozi was the first friend I ever made when I moved to Seoul! He composes all the songs I dance to,” he reasoned, tapping his spoon nervously against the rest of his rice. “I just- you’re important to me, and he’s important to me…and-and…Well, you and I…”

 

The human peered at him expectantly, brown eyes wide and beautiful. It had to be a gift from the heavens to allow Mingyu to witness such grandeur. 

 

“Hyung…” The vampire swallowed, willing away the urge to say ‘yes’ to the purple-haired boy’s request. “I’m sorry, hyung, but I can’t meet any of your friends.”

 

It was part of their Can’t Say and Can’t Do list - something Mingyu had apprised him of just a few weeks ago. He’d explained that it was absolutely necessary that they both follow the rules, no questions asked, and that if the human would put complete and utter faith and trust in him, Mingyu wouldn’t have to keep disappearing anymore. 

 

Mingyu could stay for as long as possible…for as long as they don’t say or do anything that would expose their friendship…

 

Soonyoung frowned, setting down the spoon and half-eaten bowl of rice in his hands. “I know, but I wanted to ask anyway. I just…I don’t know. I’m just really happy. Like really, really happy…”

 

Mingyu sighed. He knew exactly what the boy was trying to say, even if Soonyoung wasn’t allowed to say it. But he knew because he felt the exact same way. “I am too, hyung…and I haven’t been this happy in a very long time…”

 

The boy’s lips curled slightly, hand stretching out to pinch at Mingyu’s cheek gently. “You’re so cute.”

 

“Not as cute as you,” the vampire countered playfully, catching Soonyoung's hand and cradling the human’s warm palm against his pale face. He closed his grey eyes, relishing the benevolent heat that spread down to his chest. Even though he didn’t need an ounce of that warmth, he cherished it anyway. He would burn for it if need be, as long as he could bask in Soonyoung’s glorious heat for the rest of his life.

 

“Why are you always so cold, Mingyu-yah?” 

 

“Because I’m a cold-blooded monster.”

 

The words had slipped his mouth before he could stop himself, and the two males both stared at each other wide-eyed. 

 

“I must go now, hyung.” Mingyu released the mortal’s warm hand and stood up swiftly to leave, only stopping by the door when Soonyoung called for him one last time. 

 

“Mingyu, wait!”

 

The boy shoved a scratched-up, rectangular gadget into his chest, along with a set of worn-out earphones. It looked like an outdated electronic device Mingyu had not seen in a while. He remembered his sister, Minnie, carrying it around with her for years before it broke. “This is my old MP3 player. Just…just listen to the songs. Cant’ say, can’t do. But you didn’t say ‘can’t listen’.”

 

Mingyu beamed, placing the objects into his coat pocket and giving the human’s reddened cheek a final, affectionate rub with his thumb. “I’ll see you again later tonight, hyung.”

 

“Promise?” 

 

“I promise.” 

 

Soonyoung stood on his toes, briskly kissing Mingyu on the cheek before the vampire could slip out of the apartment.

 

 

* * *

 

 

The sun was high in the sky by the time Mingyu had finished the entire playlist Soonyoung had wanted him to listen to. The songs had mostly been in English, slow and sultry with their nostalgic rhythms - Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling In Love”, Queen’s “Love of My Life”, and Toto’s “Africa” to name a few. They were all wonderfully melodious ballads he’d been familiar with. But the songs in Korean - Mingyu had never heard them before, and they were the ones that wholly immersed him in a vast, new sea of euphoria.

 

 _Today’s weather resembles you a lot_ _  
_

_The way to you becomes flowery_

_If I can catch a glimpse of your elusive heart_

_My whole body is itching and beating_

_What is this sensation, what do I do_

_What do I do_

 

The brunet couldn’t help but grin as he played his favorites over and over. There was only one person was singing in all the unnamed Korean songs. The voice was hauntingly familiar. Mingyu guessed it was a lesser known Korean idol that he’d heard once or twice on the radio, but he couldn’t discern who it was.

 

_I had a great day today_

_I hope to have our next date soon_

_The way to your house is too short_

_I’ll see you, same time tomorrow_

 

As the next song played, the vampire shot up from his bed, waltzing to his door while humming to the addictive tune. 

 

_So what I mean is, I want to know all of you_

_I’ll sing you, U Hoo, I’ll sing you, U Hoo_

_Even if my lips are dry, I need to say this baby_

_I adore you, I adore you, enough to get dizzy_

_(Adore you) these days. I (these days)_

_(Adore you) these days, I (these days)_

_You can lean right here_

_You can cover your pain with me_

_Tell me your feelings_

_Don’t hold back, it’s not enough_

_Can’t fake it no more_

_Crank up the speed_

_Stop playing hard to get_

_Now let me call you_

_Baby you’re my angel_

 

Mingyu was in his own little world now with Soonyoung’s earphones on, sliding down the staircase rails and spinning into the living room. He was aware of the fact that he looked like a complete idiot in that very moment, his body reacting in a way it never had before - moving languidly to the beat of the music only he could hear. 

 

Knowing his siblings had retired to their rooms for the day, the youngest of the household grew a little bolder and finally started singing the lyrics to the songs out loud. 

 

_Right now, you and I, we both need the same thing_

_But I don’t have it so let’s meet again later_

_Please be well until I get there_

_I’m going to you right now_

_I’m going, I try to tell you my heart_

_Even if it won’t reach you by any chance_

_Even if I run out of breath more, I’ll go quickly_

_So please wait there a little more_

_The day when your time and my time faces each other_

_I will hold you_

_Please be well until I get there_

_I really really_

_Miss you_

 

It was easy enough to remember all the lyrics with his exceptional memory, but every time a song would restart, the same exhilarating feelings would erupt in his chest like he was listening to them again for the very first time. 

 

Mingyu allowed himself to fall against the couch. The playlist had reached one specific song that always demanded his full attention - Track 17. Closing his eyes, the tall vampire stilled every movement and fully engrossed himself in what he deemed heaven would sound like, if he ever made it there. It was the only song in the Korean playlist that had Soonyoung’s deep and soothing voice in it, and the thought of the human singing the lyrics to him made him feel giddy and bashful deep inside. 

 

_Baby you, I look back in time_

_The times I’ve spent dreaming_

_Getting closer to that dream_

_I spent those days in tears_

_Engraved in the footsteps I’ve taken_

_Wherever we are in the world_

_As long as we trust each other,_

_The moment we meet_

 

_Highlight_

 

_The me in your eyes_

_The you in my eyes_

_I can’t see the end_

_To the depth of your eyes_

_Believe in this moment_

_A miracle will appear_

_Regardless of whether it’s day or night_

_I’ll be by your side_

 

Mingyu would have never thought the human would be so talented. From the way he physically looked to the way he treated others, there was only beauty and kindness in him. But just when Mingyu thought the human couldn’t be any more perfect than he already was, the boy had to surprise him by being far more gifted than he appeared to be. Being so musically-inclined just added to the ever-growing adoration Mingyu held for him. The boy did mention that he once wanted to be a k-pop star, but his weight and bone structure had always hindered companies from taking him in as a trainee. They were all fools to ignore someone who could sing _and_ dance so well. Though Mingyu had never actually seen the human dance before, Minghao had talked highly of Soonyoung’s dancing skills when both vampires had visited the mortal’s apartment on the same night.

 

“Well now, don’t you look so happy.” 

 

Mingyu’s blazing red eyes snapped open, the earphones and the MP3 dropping to the couch as he jumped to his feet.

 

“Awww, still so aloof even after all these years,” the intruder - dressed in a bold-pattern Gucci suit and a polka dot choker - cooed mockingly, rubbing Mingyu’s chin with the tip of his fingers. “I thought you would have warmed up to me by now.”

 

The tall brunet slapped the interloper’s hand away petulantly. “Who gave you permission to enter my mother’s house?!”

 

Mingyu had not seen the nefarious vampire before him in decades, but the intruder’s sinister aura remained the same, malefic and merciless and bereft of zest. The only thing that had changed was the vampire’s now fiery orange hair and the peculiar shade of amethyst in his previously grey, right eye. 

 

“I did,” echoed Joshua’s voice. 

 

His most winsome brother was peering down at them from the second floor, icy grey orbs twinkling in wicked mirth. 

 

The intruder smirked, his tyrannical gaze following Joshua as the auburn-haired male ambled down the stairs. “It’s been a while, _Joshuji_.”

 

There was no fondness in the nickname as it left his lips. In its stead, there was stifled acrimony - bad blood built on centuries of lies and betrayals. The sobriquet had been given to Joshua by Jeonghan, and the revered guest of their house was the only person allowed to utter the pet name so liberally. Anyone else who dared to call Joshua by that name meant it as a provocation.

 

“I’m glad you could make it, _Tae Tae.”_

 

The vampire - Kim Taehyung - remained impassive at the mention of his own treasured sobriquet, his flawless face an unrivaled depiction of allure. He stood arrogantly tall before the two brothers, poised and unbothered, as if they could do nothing to harm him in their maker’s domain. “Before we continue this little _tiff_ , I hope you remember that it was _you_ who summoned _me_ here. You know that I do nothing out of goodwill.”

 

Joshua chuckled darkly. “Of course. I always keep my end of the bargain. It’s really only a matter of time now.”

 

Mingyu could not understand what the two older vampires were talking about. He’d always known Joshua and Taehyung were enemies, but there were many instances where they’d corroborated together, committing many atrocious acts to accomplish a shared goal. Still, Mingyu knew better than to trust Taehyung, and whatever reason Joshua had to convene the diabolical vampire to their maker’s estate was most likely something Mingyu wouldn’t want to get tangled in.

 

“That’s what you said fifty years ago, and yet you are still stuck here.” The orange-haired vampire raised a brow questioningly, feigning pity in his countenance. 

 

Joshua’s devious smile did not falter. “Patience is a virtue, V. Everything is still happening according to plan.”

 

“So you insist…” Taehyung returned his attention to Mingyu once more. “Now then, are you ready to leave, Mingyu?”

 

The tall brunet glowered at his brother’s adversary. “What are you talking about?”

 

“Mingyu, go get Tzuyu and Minnie. You three will be spending some quality time with Taehyung for the next few months,” Joshua stated nonchalantly, ignoring the surprise in his brother’s face at the sudden revelation. 

 

Only one thing had entered his mind at that moment, taking precedence over everything and everyone.

 

Soonyoung.

 

Mingyu promised Soonyoung he would return to his apartment that night. He promised he would stop disappearing.

 

“M-Months?! What do you mean a few months? Hyung, what? What are you talking about?!” Mingyu cried in aghast, looking back and forth between the two older vampires in disbelief. “I do not understand! You-you did not mention anything about going anywhere…and with _him_ of all people!”

 

Taehyung snickered as the youngest fledgling glared at him, the back of his palm covering his wide grin. “Oh, Joshua, you certainly are the worst brother in all of history.”

 

Joshua simply shrugged his shoulders, patting Mingyu on the back with half-hearted earnest. “It slipped my mind to inform you. Now go upstairs and pack.”

 

“No! I refuse to be around the likes of him!” Mingyu pointed at their guest, growling as the shorter vampire continued his obnoxious snickering. “I refuse to be away for months! What if…what if mother returns and I am not here?”

 

If Mingyu were being completely honest, he hadn’t thought of his mother in a very long time, and he felt contrite for using her in such a way to conceal his true intentions, to deceive his own brother. He felt guilty enough as it is for not thinking of her more often. His maker, who gave him second life and saved him from Dea Tacita, who he supposedly loved with all his being - what a horrible child he was for using her name in vain.

 

“She won’t be coming back any time soon. Do not try to fight me, little brother. I am only acting upon mother’s will. It was her order that you and the girls stay with Taehyung for a brief period of time,” Joshua answered, staring at his youngest brother with a piqued expression. “Besides, what’s a few months to you, Mingyu-yah? It’s not like you have anywhere to be…or have anyone to see…” 

 

The brunet was trapped, backed into a corner like a helpless animal, and he knew his brother would not accept any kind of retaliation. Mingyu had no other option. Their mother’s commands were absolute. Whatever she wanted, they would follow. No matter what it was. 

 

“We leave in 15 minutes,” Taehyung added indifferently. “Spring has barely even begun, and the sun is already being insufferable. Don’t forget to bring your umbrella. I don’t want to be blamed if you burn to a crisp before we even get to the car.  

 

Mingyu nodded solemnly, pained by the knowledge that he’d be breaking his promise to Soonyoung. He didn’t even have time to give the human his reasons. Mingyu just hoped that the boy wouldn’t be too devastated and that Soonyoung would find it in his heart to forgive him once he returned. Betraying the mortal’s trust was the last thing on his mind. But even when Mingyu was trying his hardest not to, all he ever seemed to do was let Soonyoung to get hurt.

 

“Don’t worry, Mingyu-yah,” Joshua continued, eyes glinting brighter than usual as he observed the contempt in his youngest brother’s face. “You will have Tzuyu and Minnie with you. Think of it as a recreational pilgrimage of sorts. Or a life-changing vacation, whatever tickles your fancy. Taehyung will be good to you. He will protect you in Seungcheol’s absence.”

 

Their youngest bit his lip, apprehension settling in the pit of his stomach. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

Neither Minnie nor Tzuyu were happy about leaving the estate for a loosely specified amount of time. It wasn’t just leaving their maker’s home. They were apparently leaving the entire country.

 

“Keflavik? We’re going to Iceland?!” Minnie shrieked, eyes widening at the plane ticket in her hands. The ginger-haired female looked to her two siblings with distraught. Tzuyu allowed little emotion to show on her face, but the rancor swirling in her grey eyes was more than evident. Mingyu, on the other hand, kept staring out the heavily tinted windows of the limousine. His inner musings were occupied with nothing but heartbreak as he sat stiffly and wordlessly in his seat.

 

Taehyung glanced up from his phone, eyeing the Thai vampire blankly. “Goodness. Joshua really doesn’t tell you anything.”

 

The orange-haired vampire crossed his legs, dropping his phone to the seat beside him. “Well, if you really must know, yes. We are going to Iceland.”

 

“Why Iceland?” Tzuyu inquired, delicate fingers fiddling with the hem of her black skirt. “Why must we travel so far?”

 

“Because Iceland is the only place consecrated by our ancestors - the Originals,” Taehyung began, faintly irked that he had to be explaining this to the three siblings, when it had been Joshua’s responsibility to do so. “Many believe that all vampires have an innate gift, but not everyone is reborn with their power aroused from dormancy. Some say the first vampires, who found the Garden of Eden and gained immortality, traveled all the way to Islandia to awaken their gifts. There, they blessed the cold ground, so that their descendants could also enkindle their powers in the land of ice and darkness.”

 

Natural talents like exceptional vision, hearing, strength, and speed were all traits common to children of the night, with varying levels of skills for those who harnessed their talents. But vampire gifts like the ancient Miyavi’s Mind Control, Xu Minghao’s Healing, and the former queen Yoon Eunhye’s Telekinesis were rare, far rarer than they used to be. There were those fortunate enough to be reborn with some sort of ability - vampires like Vernon who had at least an inkling of power. Then there were also fledglings who were far more gifted than their ancestors and maker, children who possessed destructive and mind-boggling abilities like Kim Taeyeon's eldest, Irene - the only vampire in history born with the power to kill anyone with a single touch.

 

“Taehyung-ssi, no one in mother’s line has ever been gifted,” Minnie stated anxiously. “The only person close to having a gift is Seungcheol-oppa. His strength remains unchallenged. No one in their right mind would ever battle him in a duel.”

 

Taehyung shrugged his shoulders. “I am simply doing what was requested of me. The likelihood of all three of you, or even one of you, succeeding is highly improbable. Of all the vampires who’d sought my help, only one has ever successfully inspirited their gift.”

 

“Who was it?” Minnie asked.

 

The oldest vampire leaned back, running his tongue over sharpened fangs. “Jung Soojung.”

 

Krystal - the ancient vampire Im Yoona’s daughter, a vampiric siren with gold-spun hair and shocking cerulean eyes. Mingyu had been an acquaintance of hers in the past, back when she still had her long, black tresses and sibylline grey orbs. Even then, she had been one of the most beautiful vampires in the world - a scion of Lorelei and Lolita, titillating and enviable to everyone around her. 

 

Both their makers had disapproved of their friendship. The ancients were fearful of the passion that could unfold between their progeny, even though they never had to worry about such. Neither of them ever felt any romantic inclination for one another other. Krystal had been arranged to become a bride for Kim Myungsoo, son of the ancient Armand Lee, in order to form an alliance between their families. But she was in love with Kim Jongin, another vampire hailing from the House of Choi Siwon. 

 

“The poor girl did not wish to marry Myungsoo, but that did not mean she had to kill him,” Taehyung reiterated, arms crossed over his chest as he shook his head. “When no one would help her, she sought my assistance to bring forth her powers. I doubted she’d be triumphant, but in the end, that girl surprised me when she emerged with blonde hair and blue eyes. After she killed heartbroken little Myungsoo, Krystal ran off with her lover. Never to be seen again. I honestly thought she would become queen and bring everyone to their knees. It was such a waste of a beautiful gift.” 

 

Tzuyu opened her mouth to speak next. “And what was her power?”

 

“Sensory Deprivation,” the orange-haired male replied. “She could take your sight. She could take your hearing. She could take all five of your senses if she desired…and leave you blind, deaf, mute, and unfeeling of the world you once knew. You’d wish you were dead if she ever used her power on you.”

 

“How frightening,” Minnie remarked, obviously disturbed, and Mingyu rubbed her arm gently to ease her discomfort.

 

“Why do vampires come to you for help, Taehyung-ssi?” was the Taiwanese female’s next question. 

 

Taehyung licked his lips and smiled forebodingly, raising a finger to point at his discolored right eye. “I am cursed you see. This is the penance bestowed upon me by our Great Vampire King of the East - Park Jungsoo. I am eternally condemned as the keeper of the Blessed Land, and I am the only one who can find it. Thus, I am bound to assist those who seek to awaken their dormant powers…that is, if they can find me first.”

 

The limousine came to a stop in front of a private plane. It was the one their mother would use for her travels to different countries. 

 

“You’re lucky you are brothers and sisters of Joshua. Your mother would have never been able to find me if she did not have Joshua as her vile son,” Taehyung commented, placing a pair of Prada sunglasses on the bridge of his nose. 

 

He turned to Mingyu, who stared back at him in disinterest. “What?” the tallest vampire questioned blandly.

 

“I honestly do not have any high hopes for you,” his sunglass-obstructed gaze raked up and down Mingyu’s body. “You’ve always seemed like the weakest out of Goo Hara’s fledglings.”

 

The brown-haired vampire rolled his eyes, donning his own Ferragamo sunglasses and unfurling his black umbrella. “I do not care about gaining any sort of power.”

 

The four vampires stepped out of the vehicle, beneath the protection of their specially-made parasols, careful not to let the flaming heat of the sun kiss their blanched skins. 

 

The modernized interior of the jet looked incredibly luxurious with its powder white recliners and Ardabil carpeting. The captain and his co-pilot greeted them with enthusiastic smiles as they boarded. Both men appeared to be in their 40s, undoubtedly human with their dark brown eyes and flushed complexions, but no questions escaped their lips, even after witnessing their passengers’ unearthly appearances.

 

“If it makes you feel any better, Mingyu,” Taehyung whispered into his ear, too close for comfort, after they had entered the safety of the aircraft. “The faster you get this over with, the sooner you can be with your Soonyoungie.”

 

Mingyu’s grey eyes shot open in panic, his body shaking as he backed away from the older vampire. 

 

“Jeonghan was right. You _are_ horrible at keeping secrets,” the orange-haired male chuckled, moving to his own seat opposite Mingyu’s. 

 

“I d-don’t know what you’re talking about,” the brunet asserted immediately. “What did Jeonghan-hyung say to you?!”

 

Taehyung picked up his snifter of blood, taking a sip before answering. “Jeonghan didn’t tell me anything. You implicated yourself all on your own, Mingyu.”

 

“T-Then how do you know about Soonyoung?” 

 

“I saw the name taped on the back of your MP3 player, and I wanted to find out who it was,” he explained casually, nails tapping against the glassware. “I’ve never met a vampire named Soonyoung. To which family does this Soonyoung belong to?”

 

“I…” Mingyu’s voice trailed off, shocked to the point of incoherence. The MP3 player. Where did he leave Soonyoung’s MP3 player? “I don…I-I d…hyung-”

 

“So now you decide to use formalities? Are you really that scared, Mingyu? Your maker would probably…” 

 

He wasn’t even listening to what Taehyung had to say anymore. Mingyu felt like he’d taken a solid punch to the gut. No words would escape his parted lips. He couldn’t even hide the horrified expression in his face. His limbs refused to move, and as the captain of the airplane relayed his safety message over the intercom, the brunet felt both his strength and sanity slip away slowly.

 

This was it. 

 

This was the end. 

 

Joshua was going to find out.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Seungcheol picked up a rectangular-shaped electronic device off the couch of their maker’s living room. “Joshua, is this yours?”

 

The winsome vampire approached his older brother, looking down at the scratched up MP3 player that was deposited into his palm. “No,” he answered insipidly, eyeing the old gadget in antipathy. His fingers adeptly turned the device over, noticing the messy handwriting penned over a strip of adhesive tape.

 

Soonyoung.

 

Joshua hit the rusty play button on the dilapidated gadget and disconnected the antiquated earphones on its last leg. The melody of an unfamiliar song instantly played, filling the whole room with a lively beat.

 

_Baby you, I look back in time_

_The times I’ve spent dreaming_

_Getting closer to that dream_

_I spent those days in tears_

_Engraved in the footsteps I’ve taken_

_Wherever we are in the world_

_As long as we trust each other,_

_The moment we meet_

 

_Highlight-_

 

He stopped the song with a light press on the pause button, chortling at the hopelessly romantic lyrics. “A love song. How…quaint.”

 

Oh, dear, what had his youngest brother been doing these past few months?

 

“I’ll keep this safe,” Joshua said through upward-curled, cherry-tainted lips. “Mingyu will definitely want this back when he returns.”

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fuck. Okay so I kind of had to rush this chapter, like I had the body to it (kind of), but I refined and rewrote it in six hours, because I really really wanted to update today. Forgive me for any mistakes I made. I will definitely be coming back to this to proofread and re-do some wording. This chapter wasn't supposed to end there, but I felt like the Iceland adventure would've made the chapter waaaaay too long. Anyway, thank you as always to those who've been reading and commenting this entire time! I'm going to try my best to update with two chapters instead of one next time! Let me know what you guys think! <3 I'm off to bed. Work starts at 4 in the morning tomorrow *cries* I love SoonGyu!!!!!!!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A quick warning: This chapter will have some mature themes and violence. Also, some mention of rape and a whole lot of blood. This is where the story gets darker.

 

 

 

_Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live._

_-Norman Cousins_

 

 

 

 

Kim Taehyung opened an old book he had not read in a very long time. The vampire was sitting down on an ice cold floor, leaning against a marble pillar with his legs crossed over one another. His long fingers breezed through the faded pages, searching for a very specific chapter in the hardbound text.

 

“The Children of Eden,” he read out loud. “Before there was the written word, before there was the abstract of time, seven mortals of earth met beneath the Galazios - the ancient star that binds the sun and sleeps before the shattering dawn. They did not speak the same tongue, but they all shared the same dream - to find truth that only the stars that live the longest know. The truth of God. The truth of man. The truth of life...and the truth of the Garden.”

 

The sensual vampire licked at his sharp fangs, a teasing smile dancing on his lips. “They did find the blasphemous garden - where the downfall of man started, where sin was born from the shame and greed of a naked man and a naked woman. The journey had been treacherous, almost killed them all. But they found the Garden they had been looking for. So the Serpent rewarded them with death and eternity. A damned eternity fit for the vilest of humans. For no man will ever be stronger than the Serpent or greater than the Lord All Mighty.”

 

Taehyung sighed in vexation. Reading the book did nothing to efface his boredom as he thought it would. Still, he trudged forward. After all, his audience needed to hear the story. “There in the Garden, the seven humans became the Children of Eden. The Immortals. The Originals. The First Vampires. Our great ancestors. Their bodies turned cold and pale and hard like diamonds, and their eyes became silvery like the midnight sun called Luna. They were beautiful, and they were perfect. But they wanted more. More truth and more power. So they traveled farther and farther. They reached Islandia, and the cold and the ice made them greater, but it was still not enough. They grew hungrier and weaker each day. Alas, blood had been their remedy - the blood of the living was what kept them strong, but it did nothing to protect them from Apollo - the bright and burning morning star. So they searched for more truth. More power. More life. But there was no more life to find, because they were no longer alive.”

 

The slight movement of metal caught his eye. His left hand grasped at the chain fastened to the ground, tugging at it harshly. A muffled cry reached his ears, and Taehyung smiled.

 

He tossed the stodgy book over his shoulder, and his right fist punched through the ground, the thick layer of ice disintegrating from the force of a single hit. The cracks revealed a rectangular pool beneath the bone-biting frost, small enough to fit only one body. He pulled at the other end of the chain, which had been buried in the ice and wrapped tightly around Mingyu’s neck. The younger vampire’s head emerged from the freezing water, the rest of his body still bound and submerged underneath the surface. The brunet was coughing up water and shaking, eyes bloodshot and pupils almost completely black.

 

“Mingyu, why do you keep interrupting me?” the orange-haired vampire queried, feigning hurt in the tone of his voice. “Do you wish to stay down there longer?”

 

Gasping for breath, Mingyu shook his head. “N-No, please! Please! Don’t let me go back down there!”

 

Taehyung chuckled maniacally. “But you’ve only been in the water for two weeks!”

 

“Two weeks???” the brunet cried, tears streaming down his face. “Hyung, I do not have any powers! Let me go home! Let me g-”

 

The older male pushed Mingyu’s head into the glacial water once more, ignoring the thrashing beneath his palm. “Blame your maker, Mingyu. She told me to make you suffer the most so you could awaken the strongest power possible.”

 

The greater the suffering, the greater the power. That was what many vampires believed.

 

After a few moments, the younger vampire stilled beneath the water, and Taehyung retrieved his hand, flicking away the droplets of water on his pale arm. He released the chain, letting the metal slack against the ground, and picked up the book he was previously reading.

 

He skimmed through the fragile pages, searching for another chapter to read. “Now then, let me tell you about the story of Kim Yukwon. It’s one of my favorites.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

Mingyu had forgotten how it felt to be cold. Cold to the point of being unable to move.

 

He had forgotten how it was to lose your consciousness, mind and body detached, severed from wakefulness and vulnerable.

 

Lost in nothingness.

 

He may have been dead, but he could still feel the pain that came before death. Only, there was no relief in the form of dying. There was only the endless agony - a cycle of healing and suffering in an infinite loop, and he did not know how many times he had begged for the sun to burn him instead, to deliver him from adversity, and to finally bring him peace.

 

But even in his ceaseless misery, the stabbing ache in his undying heart was far more harrowing. The pain was merciless and unyielding, and it reminded him of his weakness and his uselessness.

 

He didn’t deserve Soonyoung. He never did.

 

Monsters like him deserved only sorrow.

 

But even then, even when he fully knew what he did not deserve, the vampire still wanted to be with his human.

 

It was so incredibly wrong, but Mingyu wanted to be with him anyway. It was selfish, but it was the only thing he’d ever wanted for himself.

 

He wanted happiness with Soonyoung.

 

He wanted to be with him forever.

 

More tears spilled from his closed eyes, mixing and disappearing into the ice cold water suspending him.

 

His body jerked, drowning and choking on water once more. He screamed but only the gurgling sound of his lungs collapsing erupted from his throat. His mind was unraveling, unable to take any more of torture, and everything began to morph before him, reality and fantasy copulating together in an indistinguishable specter.

 

“Mingyu-yah,” he heard the human boy calling for him, beckoning him into a phantasmagoria.

 

He opened his red eyes. Suddenly, he was back in his own room, in his maker’s estate. Soonyoung was there too, dressed in a cozy knitted white sweater and blue jeans, smiling at him so sweetly.

 

It made him hungry - seeing the beautiful human in such a defenseless state, in a place where no one would hear him no matter how loud he screamed.

 

But Mingyu wasn’t hungry for blood. No, he was hungry for something much more sinister.

 

The vampire smiled back and moved closer to the boy, slowly and menacingly, backing him up into a wall like a predator. The human did not protest, even when Mingyu placed both hands on the wall, caging him and preventing any sort of escape.

 

Their lips were a hair’s breadth from touching. Mingyu could feel his skin tingle, his stomach churn, and his core weighing him down as something pleasurable stirred deep inside…something so deep below, coercing him to close the gap between their bodies, to grab onto Soonyoung’s hips and thrust himself against the human. Anything to heighten the pleasure he felt.

 

Something wicked entered his mind then. He could imagine the boy with icy grey orbs, translucent skin paler than ivory, and glittering fangs sharper than knives. Ethereal. Unworldly. Tempting. Dangerous.

 

Yes, immortality would suit Soonyoung just fine.

 

“Do you want it? Do you want me?” Mingyu muttered, brushing his nose against the human’s rosy cheek, lips ghosting over the warm skin.

 

He wanted to bite into Soonyoung’s supple flesh, and he wanted the boy to bite into his neck as well - the way a pair of vampire lovers would do so in their heated fornications. He wanted them to press bloody kisses against each other’s lips. He wanted friction. He wanted to do something to relieve the gnawing ache eating at him from beneath his navel. He wanted to touch every inch of Soonyoung’s pale flesh, to taste it, to mar it with bites and bruises and blood. Mingyu wanted to make the boy cry and beg for deliverance. He wanted to make the boy feel carnal ecstasy in its purest form. Oh, the multitude of sinful acts they could do if they were both vampires.

 

“Mingyu-yah…” the human whispered, hands caressing Mingyu’s jawline and cheeks. “Do it fucking fast.”

 

At that moment, every ounce of control had left his mind. He reached behind Soonyoung’s head, pulling him forward and smashing their lips together in a frenzied kiss. It was violent and raw, the meshing of their mouths eliciting moans from the human’s throat. Mingyu parted his reddened lips, and the boy slipped a hot tongue in, licking at the vampire’s tongue and dragging it against the roof of Mingyu’s mouth.

 

Soonyoung was gripping at his hair, fingers roughly carding through the strands and tugging hard at the roots. His other hand fell to Mingyu’s back, nails digging into the fabric of his shirt as the vampire lifted him up by the thighs.

 

He carried the boy to his bed, dropping him onto the soft mattress before diving in for another searing kiss. He hungrily assaulted the human’s lips, licking and sucking at the tender skin and allowing not a second of repose for the boy’s swollen and abused mouth. Mingyu groaned when Soonyoung bit down on his lower lip in retaliation, shuddering at the pleasure that raked through his entire body.

 

He could feel the human’s hand start roaming down lower, pausing at the top of his pants. Soonyoung’s fingers slipped in between into the space between the fabric and his skin, and the vampire gasped when the mortal wrapped a hand around his-

 

“Have some decency, won’t you?”

 

Mingyu shot up from where he lied, vomiting blood and water between his outstretched legs. He glared at the orange-haired vampire crouching before him and growled.

 

Taehyung rolled his eyes. “Oh, stop being so dramatic.”

 

He crushed the rest of the chains around Mingyu’s limbs with his bare hands, releasing the younger male’s torn and bloated flesh from the rusting metal.

 

“H..H-how lo…l-long?” the brunet struggled to speak, still gasping for breath.

 

“A month.”

 

The vampire winced, trembling violently as he slouched forward to cough up more water.

 

“Usually, people experience nightmares while they’re drowning. They don’t usually get boners under water,” Taehyung commented laconically, pointing at Mingyu’s wilting erection. “You must be one sick fuck.”

 

Mingyu snarled, “I am n-not…de-demented. I only…felt p-peace. I on-only saw peace…”

 

Taehyung’s eyes narrowed distrustfully. “Peace, you say? Did you not see carnage? Did you not see war and contagion?”

 

He shook his head, still scowling at the vampire standing beside him. “There…w-was on…ly S-Soon…Soonyoung.”

 

“How interesting…” The orange-haired vampire walked away briefly, fetching a blanket to drape over Mingyu’s naked body.

 

The younger male covered himself with the thick wool and stood up shakily. “L-let me go…back to S-Seoul.”

 

“Go back to Seoul? But we are not done with your tribulations.”

 

Mingyu cringed. “Then wh…why did you p-pull me out o-of the water?”

 

“I was tired of waiting when there was obviously nothing happening, but don’t worry. There is more suffering to come,” Taehyung insisted, his awful and obnoxious grin still plastered on his face. “That was only the beginning.”

 

How Mingyu wished he had the strength to beat that stupid grin off of Taehyung’s face.

 

“Y-You said it…yourself. I-I…am the w-weakest…” The brunet glared at his dead contemporary as best as he could, still shivering from the iciness that would not leave his skin. “W-Why are you…why b-b-bother?”

 

His grin immediately fell. Taehyung crossed his arms over his chest and quirked a brow, displeasure sinking into the frown on his lips. There was no longer any amusement in his eyes. “Because something is coming. For all of us.”

 

“What...l-lies do you speak?” Mingyu groused, remembering the haunting words Lee Gikwang had once spoken to him. His message had been clear, but the warning had simply been deemed the fallacy of a mad man. His most winsome brother insisted that it was nothing to worry about. Why would Joshua sweep the truth underneath a rug? Why wouldn’t Joshua warn his own siblings if death and destruction really was upon them?

 

“Not lies, Mingyu. Only truth. Lee Gikwang was right. Something is coming, and you need to know. Hell, the whole vampire world needs to know, but everyone is too busy with their own fucking agendas to realize that this will end us all,” Taehyung growled, mismatched eyes glowing like precious gems set ablaze. “Vampires, humans…no one will be safe. Not against a power so old and so dark. That is the truth your precious older brother does not want you to know.”

 

The pieces of the puzzle started connecting in Mingyu’s mind, a grim picture coming together as a bleak herald of the future. His maker’s prolonged absence. Lee Gikwang’s warning. The journey to Iceland.

 

“My mother is a queen. She is a conqueror, but she is not a warrior,” Mingyu muttered, the realization slowly dawning on him as he stared vacantly at the icy floor beneath his feet. “She wants me to fight. She wants me, Tzuyu, and Nicha to fight…”

 

A war was coming, and Goo Hara needed power. She needed protection. She needed to stay away, and watch the battle happen from afar. Her fledglings would have to fight for her. As heartless as it seemed, that was what they were there for - to protect their mother at all costs, to protect her land, to protect her treasures, to die in her place if need be.

 

They had Seungcheol. He was her strongest, but even he could not win a war all on his own. Their mother needed him the most, not just as a General to execute her plans but as her most powerful protector as well. Joshua was the smartest out of all of them. Though combat was not his playing field, his wisdom and craftiness made him far too valuable to lose.

 

Everyone else was just a pawn, with no coveted talents and no battle experience, and Joshua had told them not to worry…had hid the truth from them, so that they would not flee.

 

Mingyu, Tzuyu, Minnie, Jeonghan, and Lisa. They were the chosen lambs for sacrifice.

 

They were the ones meant to die.

 

“…And without a gift…without some kind of advantage, you are as useless as a human against what is to come,” Taehyung finished ruthlessly, his own words perfectly echoing what was inside Mingyu’s head.

 

Lee Gikwang was right. They were all doomed.

 

It was all so very cruel, but Mingyu knew that his maker still loved him. Hara still loved her three youngest children. After all, she was giving them a fighting chance - sending them to this icy fortress to rouse the powers that laid quiescent in their bodies. This had all been an act of kindness on her part, benevolence at its finest. Mingyu couldn’t believe he had not realized it before.

 

“Let me bear these afflictions.” He turned to Taehyung, a weak and bitter smile forming on his blue-tinted lips. “Help me become stronger…”

 

 

* * *

 

 

The sound of repetitive and sickeningly cheerful beeping reached his ears. It did nothing to soothe the dull throbbing in his temples, and as much as Mingyu wanted to strike out in anger, his restrained and bloodied limbs would not allow him to do so.

 

From the corner of his eyes, he could see Taehyung crossed-legged on the icy white floor. The orange-haired vampire was totally engrossed in the game he was playing on an old entertainment console, attached to an equally outdated television - the kind that still played VHS tapes.

 

The image of Taehyung slowly started to blur, his vision getting wearier by the hour.

 

Mingyu had once again lost track of the days. He was starving, and he was extremely weak. He hadn’t fed since he’d left Seoul, and the blood dripping from his own wounds made his suffering even worse.

 

The older vampire had stabbed him with various blades laced with traces of silver and left them embedded in his body. The amount of poisonous metal was not enough to kill him, but it was enough to leave him in burning and harrowing pain for days on end.

 

Mingyu could not move to pull the blades out. His arms were shackled against a frozen wall, suspending him in a hunched-over, kneeling position with his upper limbs stretched behind his back.

 

The beeping suddenly stopped, his grey eyes struggled to refocus themselves on the figure before him.

 

“Oh, Mingyu, it hurts doesn’t it? Won’t you even try to escape your bounds?” Taehyung’s voice resounded through his ears.

 

The brunet attempted to shake his head, but his body refused to cooperate. The strength in his muscles had already been depleted to a dangerous level.

 

Another blade appeared in Taehyung’s hands. He could feel the pressure of the sharp edge slowly sinking into his chest, right above his heart, adding to the pain that plagued his body down to the bone.

 

Finally, he released a shrill cry of agony before losing his consciousness and returning to a comatose state once more.

 

 

* * *

 

 

The next time he opened his eyes, Mingyu was in a different room. It wasn’t his bedroom in his maker’s mansion, and it wasn’t the room of torment he’d been in before he closed his eyes.

 

This room was small, old, and dirty, but most importantly, it was not modern.

 

He shot up from the makeshift cot he was lying down on, and tears started welling at the corner of his eyes. His hands pushed at the tattered blanket as he rushed to his feet and ran for the door.

 

Mingyu pushed at the feeble wood, and gentle morning light generously poured over his form as he stepped out into the sunshine. His flesh did not burn. The sun could not hurt him, not when he was human. In this dream…in this nightmare, he had to be a mortal.

 

Because this place was home.

 

It was his home…his _real_ home in Anyang…in the Region of Sudogwon, right next to the Suri Mountain where he died three hundred years ago. He had not returned to this place since then.

 

Mingyu began sobbing uncontrollably into his hands. He knew this wasn’t real. Everything he was seeing had been conjured up by his mind from his human memories, but the pain was all real. It was painful even if it was just a dream.

 

“Gyu-oppa? What’s wrong?”

 

He looked up from his hands and saw the cherubic face of his little sister. She was barefooted and dressed in her worn-out hanbok, since they could never afford anything better. But she was still beautiful and angelic to him.

 

“Minseo…” he whimpered, wrapping his arms around her in a tight embrace and sobbing into her black hair. “I miss you…I miss you everyday. I have not forgotten! I will never forget! I’m sorry…I’m sorry…I’m sorry…”

 

She hugged him back, rubbing his back in comfort. “I know, oppa. It’s okay…it’s okay…”

 

Just like that, the beautiful scene of his hometown disintegrated before him.

 

The bright sky abruptly turned black and starless, and everything was illuminated by blazing hell-fire and massacre. Dead bodies laid scattered right where the village children had once been playing beside the Anyang River. Women were being raped, and men were being slaughtered. Their little ones were being thrown into cages to be scalped, as foreign men continued ransacking their homes and burning every remnant to the ground.

 

Mingyu turned around to see his own house being consumed by a fire, the screams of people around him drowning out the rapid beating of his heart.

 

_No…no…no…._

 

He regretted looking down at the little girl in his arms. Her body remained unmoving and her eyes lifeless as he tried to shake her awake, the vicious color of red soaking through her shredded hanbok. “Don’t leave me again! Minseo! Please don’t leave me!”

 

Out of desperation, he bit into her neck, but his teeth were not sharp enough, and there was no poison in his system to turn her into a vampire. It pained him to remember that in this nightmare, he was not a child of the Nox, and he could not save his sister. He was just a young human, weak and small and powerless against death, and Mingyu had never hated himself more than this moment.

 

“I’m sorry…I’m sorry, Minseo…” he weeped, his vision blurred by the abundance of tears in his eyes.

 

He held her tight against his chest, cradling her dead body as rocked back and forth to desolately relieve his heartbreak. His mind was unraveling again, edging closer and closer to the brink of madness. Reliving the death of his sister was too much to bear.

 

“I’m sorry…I’m sorry…I’m sorry….”

 

_Mingyu._

 

He blinked, and he was no longer in his hometown. The miasma of death was no longer in the air, and the screams of anguish surrounding him had been deafened.

 

“Mingyu,” the pacifying voice called to him once more.

 

The brunet looked up from where he sat, his rapidly blinking eyes instantly meeting a warm, welcoming gaze.

 

“Practice is over, Mingyu-yah,” Soonyoung said, peering down at him fondly with his soft, brown-colored eyes. His hand reached out to grab Mingyu’s, pulling him up to his feet.

 

The boy’s touch was filled with ardor, easing Mingyu’s erratic heartbeat into a peaceful concord - the pain in his heart dissolving away until only a muted pang remained. His sister’s death was shoved back into the deep recesses of his human memories, buried but not forgotten.

 

Their hands intertwined, fingers lacing together perfectly as if they had done this so many times before. On both their pinky fingers, they had a matching set of silver rings. Engraved on the metal bands were three english letters of the alphabet - SVT.

 

“It’s time to go, sleepyhead,” Soonyoung cooed, raising his other arm to dotingly ruffle Mingyu’s hair.

 

They were in a lime green-painted room full of mirrors, and in the corner, there was a stereo and TV set with folded chairs neatly stacked together against the wall. It didn’t take long for him to discern that they were in a dance studio.

 

As Mingyu scrutinized his reflection in one of the mirrors, a pair of dark brown eyes stared back at him - wide yet tired from lack of sleep. Still, his face appeared incredibly young, and his hair was a rich, deep noir. There were black studs in both of his ears, and his entire body was long and scrawny, swallowed up by a giant blue t-shirt.

 

Soonyoung looked very young too, dressed in his own oversized fuchsia shirt, and he had a fluffy blonde tresses instead of frosty blue hair. He was shorter than Mingyu recalled him to be, but his gorgeous eyes remained the same - slanted like the hands of a clock at 10:10. They had always been his best features.

 

He gaped at the lanky teenager in front of him, taking in every detail in awe. This was how his human looked when he was younger. He was absolutely adorable, but something was missing, and Mingyu couldn’t help but frown. “Hyung, where are your cheeks?!”

 

The teen took several steps back, cupping his reddening face in embarrassment and shielding them from Mingyu’s view. “Kim Mingyu! Why would you bring that up right now?!”

 

Mingyu clicked his tongue at the shorter boy. “Because I love your cheeks!”

 

“I needed to lose the weight, or else they would have never let me debut, remember?”

 

Debut. Soonyoung was going to be an idol, and if he was here practicing with Soonyoung, that meant they were both going to be idols. Together. In the same group.

 

SVT.

 

Seventeen.

 

That was going to be their group name.

 

He did not mind this fantasy, not when the human was fulfilling his life-long dream, and Mingyu would be there to witness it happen, right by his side.

 

An affectionate smile tugged at his lips. “Either way, you’re still the beautiful person you’ve always been.”

 

The teen’s blush deepened even more upon hearing Mingyu’s honest words. The older boy stomped away with a huff, heading for the exit and stopping only to turn back and yell, “We’re still going to the fair!”

 

Mingyu chuckled and followed Soonyoung out the door like an over-sized puppy.

 

 

* * *

 

 

“And we have a winner!”

 

The tall male grinned sheepishly as he received a gigantic white teddy bear from the game concessioner. The old man congratulated him once more for winning 3 games of ball toss in a row before Mingyu happily walked away with his prize.

 

“Hyung, I got you another one,” he said cheerfully, handing the stuffed animal to Soonyoung.

 

“Mingyu…you need to stop!” he shyly protested, the red in his face deepening as he added another fluffy item to his wagon of fair prizes.

 

Literally, Soonyoung was dragging a red wagon filled all the stuffed toys Mingyu had won from almost every game at the fair. People were starting to stare, and no doubt, they would soon get kicked out for claiming too many prizes.

 

Mingyu, however, paid them no heed.

 

After he’d witnessed a few high school students fawning over their dates for winning them prizes at the fair, the tall boy made it his personal mission to make each of those girls jealous over Soonyoung and the amount of gifts being showered upon him.

 

He deserved at least that, because it would take a while before Mingyu could give him the rest of the world. Until then, the stuffed animals would have to do.

 

“Hyung, I want you to have everything,” the taller boy declared, pouting as his hyung dragged him away from the next stall he’d targeted. They had the most adorable stuffed sloth that would look cute wrapped around Soonyoung’s neck.

 

“I don’t need all these toys, Mingyu. I just need you,” Soonyoung stated unmindfully, before slapping a hand to his mouth, eyes bulging out in shock.

 

Mingyu felt his beating heart leap in his chest. He parted his lips to answer, but an explosion of fireworks caught both their attentions.

 

Everyone at the fair immediately looked up to collectively witness bright colors erupting in the sky - the light of powder and heat bursting across the heavens in a stupendous and mesmerizing display. Who would have ever thought that humans could created such marvelous sights with the technology they had developed? 

 

He looked forward to everything else the future had in store for them. The two of them together - him and Soonyoung, with a tomorrow to anticipate and maybe even an eternity if the human wished to join him in his shadowy world.

 

"Hyung, do you want..." Mingyu started, but when he turned back to face Soonyoung, the shorter boy was no longer by his side.

 

He furrowed his brows, looking around to find his missing friend. His height gave him a good view over the crowd, but Soonyoung was nowhere to be found.

 

Something else caught his eye though. It was one of the plushes he’d won, a giant hamster, but its head had been torn off its body. He picked up the ruined toy, and a sense of dread struck him hard.

 

There was another toy just a few meters away. A stuffed rabbit this time, torn right down the middle and discarded next to a darkened path. Then, he spotted another toy laying ravaged on the ground just a few meters away.

 

Mingyu followed the trail of destroyed animals, getting more and more anxious as they led him deeper and deeper into a secluded area filled with tall grass and trees.

 

Finally, he saw Soonyoung lying down in the middle of a clearing. He ran for the boy, gathering him in his arms protectively.

 

“Hyung? Hyung! Wake up!”

 

The boy would not stir, his body limp and cold in Mingyu’s arms. That was when he noticed the dried up blood that caked the boy’s pallid neck.

 

“Something is coming,” he heard a voice whisper.

 

Lee Gikwang emerged from the dark, blood running down his chin and onto his clothes.

 

“W-What…what did you do?” Mingyu’s voice shook, his rage boiling over beneath his skin. “You…what did you do?!”

 

“Something is coming…for all of us…” Gikwang cackled, deranged laughter echoing into the dark.

 

His heart sank, and a choked sob escaped his throat. He looked up to the besmirched sky, begging for the bright morning star to appear before him and take him away...take him to where Soonyoung was.

 

_When would it end? When would all this madness end?_

 

“Something is coming, Mingyu…something is coming…”

 

His world started spinning, a vicious whirlwind blinding him and forcing him deeper and deeper into a chasm. Lee Gikwang's unhinged bellows followed him down the spiraling abyss, the words fusing together into incomprehensible sentences. 

 

Suddenly, it all stopped. His dizziness came to a halt in the quiet and calm that followed. He could no longer feel any sort of beating in his heart, as it should have been for a person who was already dead. 

 

When he opened his eyes again, Taehyung was frowning down at him. There was disappointment in his eyes, but Mingyu didn’t care. He was just glad to be awake again and away from that horrid nightmare.

 

“What did you see this time?”

 

His lips quivered slightly, before the answer came in a stifled, desolate groan.

 

“Death."

 

The orange-haired male hummed once, somewhat satisfied by the response, and sat him up gently. “There is one more tribulation. After this, there will be no more. If this does not awaken any powers in you, nothing else will.”

 

The taller vampire winced from the pain in his bleeding limbs. Suddenly, he remembered his two other siblings who came here with him, and somehow, the pain in the stab wound right above his heart started hurting more. To think that they were suffering just as he was made Mingyu feel much more horrible. “How are my sisters faring?”

 

“Minnie left weeks ago. She could not handle the glacial waters, so her time here ended rather prematurely,” Taehyung explained, gently pulling him up to his feet. “She’s back in Seoul now, but I doubt she’ll be up for any pool parties this summer.”

 

“And Tzuyu?” Mingyu queried, taking one step at a time on wobbly legs. The wounds on his body were healing but not as quickly as they would have if he’d been fed.

 

A smirk appeared on Taehyung’s lips. “Tzuyu…quiet little Tzuyu broke through the chains while she was in the water and clawed her way out of the ice. That’s the first time I’ve seen someone do that.”

 

“Does that mean she awakened her power?”

 

“No, she did not,” the older vampire continued, pulling a set of keys from his back-pocket. “She could not handle the silver daggers. It took her weeks to heal and regain consciousness, even after I pulled them all out of her body and gave her blood.”

 

The brunet sighed, his dead heart heavy in his chest at the thought of his sisters’ torment. “So they are both home then…”

 

_Without me…_

 

He didn’t dare to speak those last two words. As much as it hurt that they’d gone back without him, he’d rather have his sisters safe and sound in their mother’s mansion, rather than here in this icy fortress of horrors.

 

“Tzuyu stayed to wait for you,” the older male stated, ushering him down the frosted white hallway and stopping in front of a iron, bolted door. “But even she could not handle the emotional weight of this depressing place. So I allowed her to go home as well.”

 

Mingyu faced the shorter vampire, looking down at him inquisitively. “How do you cope with it then? Staying in this place for so long, just waiting and watching for days?”

 

There was a sliver of sadness in Taehyung’s mismatched eyes, but it was quickly snuffed out by a smolder of ire. “Only one thing keeps me going- the person who means the world to me. Until I can get him back, _nothing_ in this world can destroy me.”

 

_The person who means the world to me._

 

The man’s words seemed to enkindle something deep in his being, coaxing his own resolve to fortify itself with a strength that had been forgotten.

 

_Soonyoung._

 

When he thought of who meant the most to him, it was Soonyoung who entered his mind first. Not his siblings. Not his friends. Not even his maker.

 

When he wished for relief in his nightmares, it was Soonyoung who brought him comfort and peace.

 

Whenever there was suffering, only the image of his wondrous human could efface all pain and anguish.

 

_Until I can get him back, nothing in this world can destroy me._

 

The words were like a romantic poem, speaking louder and louder as he repeated them in his head over and over. The depth and the power in those words reflected lunacy more than logic, but they were suffused with the veracity and hope of a valiant soul.

 

_Nothing in this world can destroy me._

 

Everything was clicking into place, the words and ideas burning into his racing mind. Looking down at Taehyung’s discolored eyes - gems that harbored a lifetime of brokenness and yearning, he understood what the man felt for his important person…because he felt the exact same way about Soonyoung.

 

That was the clue to this conundrum - to awaken the power within him, and Taehyung had been kind enough to give him the answer to unlocking its secret.

 

The older vampire shoved a key into the lock and released the bolt, pulling the iron door open. There was total darkness in the room, but still, he motioned for the brunet to enter.

 

Mingyu peered into the dark unknown, searching for any indication as to what was beyond the doorway. It was not like the familiar shadows that kept him safe. This darkness was unfriendly and menacing, and every bone in his body told him not to go inside. “You say this is the last one?”

 

“Yes.”

 

The brunet wordlessly walked in, looking back at Taehyung for further guidance while he was still shrouded in the light of the hallway.

 

“Good luck, Mingyu,” the older male said through a small smile. “I hope you emerge victorious.”

 

He could sense the honesty in Taehyung’s parting words, but Mingyu did not acknowledge them at that moment in time.

 

He still had one final task to finish, and when all this was over, there was only one person he needed to see, and Mingyu was ready to fight whatever tried to drive them apart.

 

The tall vampire glanced forward as the iron door closed behind him, fully immersing him in a pitch-black milieu.

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Kwon Sooyoung. That’s his name, but he also goes by the name Hoshi,” Xu Minghao responded reluctantly, hands digging into the arms of his chair, almost splintering the wood in his frustration. No matter how hard he tried, he could not keep the truth from tumbling out of his mouth.

 

Not when this man was in front of him.

 

“I didn’t mean to get involved with him, but after I got him the job at Feng Che, I couldn’t stay away. Hoshi-hyung was so genuinely kind, and he loves dancing as much as I do. So I kept watching over him even when I had no need to anymore.”

 

Wen Junhui placed both his hands over Minghao’s, clamping down on them as he towered over the thin vampire.

 

Minghao gazed back at the intense porpoise of Junhui’s zealous eyes, the only ones that could ever intimidate him so effortlessly, and felt the ache of guilt nipping away at his bones.

 

“Why would you hide this from me, Minghao?”

 

“Because I know what you would have done to protect me,” he retorted.

 

Junhui leaned back and stepped away to circle around his brother languidly. “If you’d told me sooner and allowed me to…fix this little problem, I could have kept you out of Joshua’s radar.”

 

“I can’t help Joshua. He knows that,” Minghao argued. “And the only reason why he’s seeking us out is because his brother, Mingyu, couldn’t keep a secret and had to be a goddamn fool-”

 

A pair of hands grabbed onto his shoulders, interrupting him from his rambling. Fingers pressed into the knots of his muscles, gently yet firmly alleviating the rising anger in his body, and Junhui brought his lips close to Minghao’s right ear.

 

“I don’t care what happens to Mingyu and that human,” his eldest brother whispered. “I only care about you and your safety. I only wish to spare you from the burden of your power and your oh-so-stupidly-kind heart.”

 

Minghao scoffed and narrowed his eyes. “Like I told you before, I’ll stop using mine when you stop using yours.”

 

Junhui chuckled lightly, before kissing the back of his youngest brother’s head. “My power is the only thing that protects our family.”

 

“Your power is a blight.”

 

“Is that how you really feel?” He dragged his nose over Minghao’s hair, inhaling the sweet scent before trailing his lips down to the lanky vampire’s neck line. “Or do you need me to find out the truth for myself?”

 

“Don’t you dare use your power on me again!” the smaller vampire quibbled, pushing at Junhui’s chest to create a distance between them. “And don’t you dare lay a hand on Hoshi-hyung! I don’t care what deal Joshua has made with you. If you hurt him, I will tell both of our fathers!”

 

Junhui grabbed onto the collar of his Versace dress-shirt and pulled him up from the chair. Their lips crashed together, making Minghao shudder pleasurably from the contact. Still, he winced into the kiss, because no matter how good it felt, he could never fathom what his eldest brother wanted from him with every kiss they shared…

 

…and the fact that his brother shared these kisses with many others broke Minghao’s heart time and time again.

 

After all, Wen Junhui had never been his to keep for himself.

 

“When did I ever listen to you, Xiao Hao Hao?” Jun derided softly into his ear before pushing him onto their shared bed.

 

 

* * *

 

 

The orange-haired vampire sat against the wall, knees up to his chest as a silent stream of tears fell from his vacant orbs. He rubbed at them with the back of his hand, glancing down at the blue-pendant bracelet tied on his left wrist - a poignant reminder of what once was.

 

“Oh, Kookie, how I miss you so,” he murmured through a pained gasp. “Look at me, still crying over some boy at my age. How ridiculous.”

 

His desultory jests offered him no comfort, and the tears continued to run down his face. The loneliness and the sorrow still haunted him and ate at him every single day, even after all these years.

 

“Where are you, Kookie? I need you.”

 

There was no one to hear his beseeching, and Taehyung couldn’t help but laugh at how pathetic he probably looked, calling out and begging to the ghosts of his past.

 

Again, he wiped away at the tears, sniffling. “Joshua will deliver on his promise, and when he does, I’ll find you. I promise I will, Kookie.”

 

His body stilled, catching a faint noise from across the hall. He gazed at the iron door that held baleful darkness from beyond, eyes widening in astonishment.

 

Taehyung felt a tug at the corner of his lips.

 

Finally.

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Holidays, everyone! May our 2019 be filled with more SoonGyu moments!
> 
> I will try to update as soon as I can! This fic is really taking a lot out of me, not in a bad way, but this monstrous plot has grown so big to the point where IDK when I'll get to finish this whole universe. I don't want it to end, but I kind of do as well, just so I can write more SoonGyu fics. Hopefully, I can stick to those being one-shots because goddamn, these multi-chapters are so tricky. I have to premeditate every little detail to the point where sometimes I get stuck at one part cuz I'm not sure what to reveal and what not to reveal at a given point in time. But COE:Penance is coming to an end soon, and it's just funny thinking of how this whole thing started. It really was supposed to just be a one-shot where Vampire!Mingyu and Human!Soonyoung fuck, but then I decided to expand a bit and now it's one colossal universe with the whole damn k-pop scene in here with everyone having their own story and pairings. I honestly fucking love it. I just wish I had more time to write. 
> 
> Anyway, let me know what you guys think! Thank you to everyone who's been with me this whole journey. I only wish for good things for all of you this next coming year! Please take care of yourselves, and most importantly, spread love and positivity to those around you. Can't wait to post the next chapter!


	8. Chapter 8

 

 

 

 

_Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live._

 

_-Norman Cousins_

 

 

 

 

 

The moment the plane landed in Seoul, Mingyu immediately jumped out of his seat, not even bothering to wait for the captain to announce their arrival. There were more important things on his mind right now. 

 

“See you again soon, Mingyu,” Taehyung waved goodbye, chuckling as the brunet made his way to the plane’s exit and pulled the emergency handle to open the door.

 

It was close to midnight, the soft fall of rain trickling down from the heavens. The vampire knew exactly where to find his human, or at least, hoped to find him. 

 

His brother, Joshua, couldn’t have done something to the boy. Surely, he couldn’t have. There was nothing to gain from harming Soonyoung. The mortal still didn’t know anything about their kind, and based on that alone, there was no reason to kill him. 

 

Joshua was smart. Joshua was sensible. Joshua wouldn’t hurt someone important to him…right?

 

Mingyu ran all the way to Jongno-gu, feet carrying him faster and faster as the rain started pouring harder. He didn’t care that he was turning into a sopping wet mess, not when the only thing on his mind was to see Soonyoung alive. 

 

The neon sign of Feng Che was bright in the dark street. A few people had taken to the small restaurant to escape the rainfall, slurping on hot bowls of noodles and soup broths inside the dry and toasty eatery. 

 

He stopped right in front of the drenched, clear glass window, keenly scanning every corner of the place for purple hair and slanted eyes. But the boy was not there busting tables nor manning the register. 

 

Mingyu did not have to search for him any longer though, because his icy grey eyes spotted the human pushing his moped down the street, soaked from head to toe. A burst of relief spread through his entire body, finally allowing him to relax after the relentless despair he’d been experiencing for so long. 

 

“Soonyoung-hyung!” the vampire cried through the rain, running up the street to meet him halfway.

 

The boy looked up at the sound of his name being called and winced visibly, his aggrieved expression making Mingyu's dead heart sink. Soonyoung turned his face away, ignoring the vampire and brushing past him without a word, still pushing his vehicle back to Feng Che. 

 

Mingyu grabbed onto the handles of the moped, concern deep in his furrowed brows. “Is it broken? Hyung, let me help-”

 

Soonyoung shrugged his hands away, glaring up at Mingyu. Even through the rain that poured between their faces, he could still see the pain in the boy’s eyes - pain he had failed to conceal through an angry gaze.

 

“Go away, Mingyu,” he spoke gently, even when he was hurting deep in his chest, even when his voice shook with resentment and bitterness. But Mingyu knew that Soonyoung had never been good at donning an armor of scorn and apathy. He was much too kind and softhearted to act so untrue to himself.

 

“Hyung…” the vampire whispered woefully, taking in the human’s change in appearance.

 

His hair was black now, bangs sticking to his forehead from the wetness of the rain. The natural, Stygian hue contrasted beautifully against the alabaster creaminess of his skin, so hauntingly pale it practically glowed in the night. Although his skin was indeed alluring, it could not overshadow the tired and despondent expression in his face. The human almost looked like he no longer had the will to live. He looked thinner too, his jaw sharper than it had been over three months ago, but Mingyu wasn’t sure whether it was from exercising or from starving. It hurt to think it was due to the boy not taking better care of himself, but the way Soonyoung’s clothes appeared much too loose on his once fuller frame could only confirm his suspicions.

 

“Mingyu, please. Go home,” Soonyoung pleaded, closing his eyes as his lower lip trembled. He settled the moped against a street lamp and walked away, tugging his drenched jacket tighter around himself in a futile attempt to shield himself from the rain.

 

But the vampire couldn’t let him go, not like this, not when it was his fault Soonyoung looked so sad and so heartbroken. So he wrapped his arms around the mortal from behind, pulling him close against his chest, his chin resting atop the boy’s head.

 

“Let go!” the human protested, struggling to release himself from Mingyu’s grasp. “Let go, Mingyu! I can’t…I can’t…”

 

His wails died out, only to be replaced by unrestrained, pain-filled bawling.  

 

"I can't! I can't do this... not when it hurts like this…You promised me! You promised you would stop disappearing!”

 

“I’m so sorry, hyung,” Mingyu apologized, willingly absorbing all the anguish emanating from the person trapped in his deathlike grip. He was too selfish to let him go. After being away from him for far too long, he needed the boy in his protective embrace. He needed to feel his warmth, his every breath, his every heart beat. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry…”

 

“I was angry for weeks.” The boy sniffed, shivering from the cold rain pouring on both of them, and rubbed at the corners of his eyes. “I’m still angry. I want to hate you…I should hate you…you just forgot about me for months…”

 

Mingyu clenched his eyes shut, knowing that if he opened them, he wouldn’t be able to stop his own tears from falling. "That's not true..."

 

_How can I forget? How can I ever forget about you when you're the only thing I can think of every single day?_

 

“What’s wrong with me, Mingyu? Why do people keep leaving me? Even Hao Hao stopped talking to me…” Soonyoung whimpered, his head falling limply as he doubled over from the agonizing pain in his chest. 

 

Mingyu's red eyes snapped open. The brunet held the boy’s body up, pulling both of them into one of the darkened side streets as a speeding car ran past them. He pressed his back against a brick wall, mentally cursing at the drunk asshole who almost killed them while still holding the mortal protectively against himself. Soonyoung latched onto both of his arms, all movements halted as he took in what had just happened and what could’ve happened if Mingyu hadn’t moved fast enough. 

 

“There’s nothing wrong with you, hyung…” he answered after the human’s racing heart slowed to a calmer rhythm, his face moving close to Soonyoung’s ear. “You are _perfect_. Minghao and I - we’re just horrible people who don’t deserve you…”

 

“Don’t feed me that crap,” the mortal hissed back. "Don’t you dare feed me lies, Mingyu."

 

“I’m not lying,” Mingyu retorted, squinting through watery eyes and resting his cheek against the back of Soonyoung’s head. “I don’t deserve you at all. All I do is hurt you and make you cry. I don’t want that for you…I want you to be happy, even without me.”

 

“But I can’t! I tried, but I can’t!" Soonyoung protested through his weeping. “I tried forgetting about you, but I can’t do that either. I just...Mingyu, I lov-"

 

“Hyung!” Mingyu shouted, cutting him off from what he knew the human was about to confess. “Don’t say it. Please. If you say it, I have to say it back…”

 

His hands finally loosened around the boy’s body, and Soonyoung took the opportunity to turn around and face the tall vampire once more.

 

“What’s wrong with saying it back?”

 

“You…We…” Mingyu bit his wet lower lip, sighing as he chose his next words vigilantly. “Together, we will never be normal. I can never give you a normal relationship, and if...if you say it now, I don’t…I don’t think I can ever let you go…”

 

They were both crying now, droplets of rain mixing with their tears. The air was filled with their mutual, unspoken want - suppressed feelings, questions, and answers better left unsaid. 

 

His dead heart felt so heavy, so burdened by the emotions he’d kept hidden for so long. “There’s so much, Soonyoung-hyung…so much I can’t say, and it hurts that I can’t tell you the truth.”

 

Anyone who dared to voyeur at their pitiful scene would have found two idiots pointlessly standing in the rain, but if they looked close enough, stayed long enough, anyone would have seen the truth - why a vampire and a human were gazing at each other so desperately and so carefully. 

 

“Then, you don't have to tell me anything," Soonyoung reached for his face, warm fingers tenderly caressing his cheek like they always did. "If you don't tell me, you can stay right?”

 

Mingyu wrapped his arms around the small human again, drawing him close like he’d always wanted to. 

 

They were both fools - fools who recklessly allowed their feelings to reign over sanity, but there was no turning back now. They were both too deep into this mess, far too enraptured by their hearts’ desires to turn away and return to their lives before they knew each other.

 

"Stay with me. I won’t ask questions. Just…please just stay, for as long as you can. Please, Mingyu?" Soonyoung muttered into his shoulder.

 

A human who knew nothing of their kind could not be slaughtered, and that was all Mingyu could ask for at the moment. For now, that was enough.

 

"Okay," he answered, smiling sadly against the top of the boy's head. "I'll stay..."

 

The human relaxed in his arms, breathing in deep as he finally stopped sobbing. “Promise me one last time. Stay with me for as long as you can…”

 

But the vampire could not make another promise he may have to break again. Instead, he hugged the boy tighter and mouthed words his dead heart yearned to say - words he knew Soonyoung could not hear over the sound of pouring rain.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Mingyu laid next to the sleeping human, peering at the boy’s serene expression in blind adoration. They were back in Soonyoung’s small apartment above Feng Che, cuddling on the mortal’s bed, protected by a worn-out comforter. The boy had fallen asleep after a hot shower, and Mingyu had been watching him ever since.

 

His fingers gently ghosted over the faded scar on Soonyoung’s cheek. He had yet to hear the story of how that cicatrix came to be. 

 

The vampire’s hand traveled down to the mortal’s plump lips, tentatively tracing the outline with a single digit. He wondered how it would feel like to finally press his own cold lips against Soonyoung’s soft, warm mouth. He wanted to find out soon, as soon as possible if the human would let him. 

 

 _But you can do it now._ Something wicked said to him, tempting him from the dark recesses of his mind and filling his thoughts with the lecherous images of what could be. 

 

Mingyu could feel his eyes filling with bloody red, and as he continued staring at the boy’s lips, he couldn’t find it in himself to look away. 

 

Soonyoung looked so enticing, so vulnerable - curled up innocently against his broad chest, all for Mingyu to have for himself. 

 

_All for you to ruin for yourself. He’ll let you do it too, you know he will._

 

Mingyu wanted to do it. He wanted to do terrible things to the human in the dark of the room, even if it was just to his lips. He could do so many vile acts with just the boy’s mouth, with those lips he would bruise from too much kissing. Those lips that would bleed from his bites. Lips that would lewdly part for him…not just for tongue-filled, feverish osculation, but also to stretch beautifully around his thick co-

 

_Stop._

 

The vampire cringed, wondering why such corrupted thoughts seemed to pervade his mind more and more these days.

 

The sound of Soonyoung’s phone alarm snapped him back to reality, away from his depraved musings, calming him down with an orchestral melody similar to one of the songs in the boy’s old MP3. He reached beneath the boy’s pillow to hit the snooze button, before shoving the device back underneath and allowing his sleeping companion a few more minutes of undisturbed rest. 

 

It was almost 4 in the morning, and his brothers were most likely waiting for him to return home, ready for explanations as to where he’d been. He would probably be coming home to Seungcheol’s angry lectures and Joshua’s disparaging comments, but the brunet was not afraid to face his siblings. 

 

The treacherous months in Iceland had triggered a great change in him. He could feel it in his bones. He was no longer the same Mingyu he’d been before. Something much stronger had taken over. It was exciting, but it was also unnerving - the way his fingertips seemed to tingle from something strange beneath his skin, the way his senses seemed even sharper than ever before…the way everything and everyone appeared deprivable of life under his touch. Perhaps it had not been something stronger that had taken over, but something darker…something bestial lurking in the shadows of his consciousness, prepared to run rampant when the perfect opportunity came. 

 

But had he really changed then? Or was this what he’d always been? 

 

After all, Mingyu had always known he was a monster. Maybe the ice and the cold had only made the caged beast inside him stronger.  

 

The human’s alarm went off again, and Soonyoung began to stir. 

 

“Mingyu-yah…” he murmured, snuggling into the brunet’s chest even deeper. His brown eyes still refused to open. “You’re so cold.”

 

The tall vampire silenced the alarm one last time and gently released himself from Soonyoung’s grasp. 

 

“Noooo, don’t leave…” came the boy’s adorable, sleepy whine, hands grabbing at the now empty space beside him as Mingyu readjusted the comforter over Soonyoung’s body.

 

He smiled fondly, hand brushing through the mortal’s raven hair and admiring the soft, bouncy tresses cascading from his fingers. 

 

Mingyu may have missed the frosty blue hair, but cool, grey eyes would definitely look flawless against Soonyoung’s new shade of black. 

 

But that was a debauched thought for another day.

 

“Don’t worry, hyung. I’ll be back. I’ll always come back,” Mingyu whispered into his ear before departing. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Well, look who _finally_ decided to grace us with his presence,” Jeonghan announced from atop the staircase in their maker’s grand foyer, his grey orbs glinting as the loathsome grin on his face spread wider.

 

There were no warm greetings welcoming him back to their shared home. Mingyu would have never expected anything else, so he should not have felt the ache that came with his eldest brother’s lack of acknowledgement for his prolonged absence. 

 

“Mingyu, where the hell were you?!” Seungcheol howled at him furiously, demanding immediate answers without giving him a second to breathe. “Your plane landed before midnight, and it’s already dawn! Where have you been this whole time?”

 

“Out,” he answered concisely, staring down at his brother defiantly. “Nothing that should concern you.”

 

The eldest cursed under his breath, snarling and baring sharp fangs at his youngest sibling. “You were to come straight back to the mansion with Taehyung. _Where were you_?”

 

Mingyu squared his shoulders in front of his brother, unfazed. “I was with someone.”

 

“Someone special, Mingyu-yah?” Joshua interposed, legs crossed as he lounged against the sofa. His eyes twinkled like two dazzling spinels, perfectly complimenting the duplicitous smile on his cherry lips. 

 

The youngest eyed the three vampires surrounding him one by one, and all three of them peered back at him like the ruthless predators they were. Jeonghan appeared to be thrilled at the sight before him, cheerfully anticipating Mingyu's punishment. Seungcheol was irate and displeased like he always seemed to be whenever Mingyu was around, scowling with his blood red eyes. But Joshua…he could never understand the looks Joshua would give him, especially in situations like these where he was their cornered prey.

 

“Someone very special and very dear to me,” Mingyu replied, looking straight into his most winsome brother’s eyes, unblinking and unmoving. 

 

He waited for a change in Joshua’s expression, and when none came, Mingyu could only affirm that Joshua had, without a doubt, learned of his human's existence.

 

Seungcheol turned to Joshua, brows furrowed, and the devious vampire simply shook his head and waved a hand at him flippantly. 

 

The eldest grumbled but did nothing more to argue with either of them. 

 

“Go see your sisters, Mingyu,” Seungcheol instructed him, still obviously peeved by the disrespect he’d been shown, but the animosity in his voice had vastly diminished. “They’ve been worried about you.”

 

The youngest vampire trudged up the stairs without another word, even though he had so much more to say. He really was in no mood to bicker with his brothers, so he took the escape right when it had been offered to him. 

 

He passed by Jeonghan quietly, shouldering him roughly in annoyance before heading straight for Tzuyu’s room. The brunet didn’t even have to knock. His sister was already waiting for him by her door, smiling softly and meekly at him. He beamed back at her, aggravation melting away as he eagerly rushed forward. 

 

At least one of his siblings missed him. 

 

“What a disappointment,” Mingyu heard Joshua say, before his resolve shattered, and the smile fell from his lips, the blood in his veins running cold. He reached for his chest, clutching at it and recoiling from the sharp pain that tormented him right in that very spot. He didn’t think it would hurt that much - to hear his brother say those words. 

 

But when had he ever made his family proud? When had he ever given them a reason to love him? 

 

Tzuyu gasped and scurried to her youngest sibling, catching him in a firm embrace. “Mingyu…”

 

“It hurts…noona, it hurts…” he muttered against her ear, his eyes screwed shut. He could not allow himself to shed tears this time. He had no right to pity himself.

 

“It’s not your fault, Mingyu-yah,” she comforted him gently, rubbing his back to soothe his heartache. Mingyu could hear her own pain carefully interweaved through her words. “We were not all meant to be gifted.”

 

It did not hurt that he had not succeeded in awakening any powers within him. It hurt that he had disappointed his brothers, his sisters, and his maker yet again. 

 

The tall vampire had long accepted that he was a failure of a fledgling, but the pain of being reminded of that, time and time again, still made his insides fester. 

 

The pain in his chest refused to linger, or rather, something else deposed it rather swiftly - leaving Mingyu’s eyes red with fury and his mouth bitter with hatred. 

 

_Forget the pain. Feel the anger._

 

_Forget the pain. Feel the anger._

 

_Forget the pain._

 

_Feel the anger._

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Hyung,” Mingyu called out to his winsome brother in the dark of their mother’s library. 

 

After searching his entire room for Soonyoung’s old MP3 player, he’d come to the conclusion that Joshua most likely had it in his possession. But of course, his older brother would never tell him that flat out. Joshua would wait for Mingyu to approach him, to start a conversation with him. Even if he’d had enough time to hide the MP3 player, Joshua would have found it somehow. His most winsome brother made it his personal vendetta to know everything about everyone - to uncover their deepest, most sickening secrets and hold it over their heads until their very last breaths. 

 

Mingyu would know. Joshua had taught him how to blackmail people.

 

“What is it, little brother?” Joshua answered coyly, looking up from the book he was reading and knowing exactly what Mingyu was there for. His eyes glinted so prettily even in the darkness, dewy and brilliant like precious jewels. The brunet vampire had always envied the brightness in his brother’s eyes. 

 

Mingyu placed a candelabra next to his brother’s stack of books, gaping at the sheer number of written materials laid out on the table in curiosity. There were enough books to take up half the long table, and they were already piled up by tens. 

 

“It’s not good to read in the dark,” he remarked, gazing at his brother’s softly illuminated face. 

 

Joshua chuckled lightly, closing the book he was reading. _The Book of Five Rings._ “I’ve been reading in the dark for centuries, Mingyu-yah, and I can assure you my vision is still better than 20/20.”

 

Mingyu stared back at him blankly, grey eyes narrowing as Joshua stood up. “I wish you could have been blessed with a hindsight just as good…”

 

The auburn-haired vampire stared at him for a moment, arms crossing over his chest, before smirking at the youngest’s snide comment. “I guess Iceland wasn’t such a waste after all.”

 

“It certainly wasn’t, hyung,” Mingyu stated, taking a step closer to his brother. He’d always felt so small next to Joshua, even though he was taller and heavier-built. But it was different now. He felt like he could crush the auburn-haired vampire in front of him if he really wanted to…if he felt angry enough to. “Like you said, it was a...life-changing vacation. Too bad you and Seungcheol-hyung couldn’t join us.”

 

“We would have loved to join you three, but Seungcheol and I had different affairs to handle at the time. Such a shame really.”

 

Mingyu raised a brow. “Affairs that have to do with war, I suppose?”

 

“War?” Joshua chortled, as if his youngest brother had spoken of only the silliest things a child could muster. “What war do you speak of, Mingyu-yah? Did that delusional Kim Taehyung fill your brain with phantasmic ideas?”

 

“Of course not, hyung. He only gave me glimpses of the truth you kept from us. Why lie, hyung? Why not tell us of what we are about to fight?” He was standing inches away from Joshua now, peering down at him with red eyes and clenched fists. 

 

The grey in Joshua’s eyes remained, but the amusement in his orbs was slowly fading. “Because there will be no battles for you to fight…”

 

“You want us all dead,” was Mingyu’s blunt accusation, his words jagged and merciless.  

 

The edges of Joshua's cherry-tinted mouth twisted into a deep frown, and his eyes were no longer glimmering in mischief. If it were even possible, the older vampire actually almost looked hurt. “Quite the opposite, dear little brother.”

 

“And why do I find that so hard to believe that?” Mingyu sneered back venomously. 

 

Joshua was glowering at him now, the playfulness in his tone long gone. “Because you only love to speak of things you know nothing of.”

 

The brunet growled, baring his fangs at Joshua in hostility. “And you only love to speak of lies and secrets! Everything is a game to you! Everything! It doesn’t matter if no one else wants to play, as long as you get what you want in the end!”

 

“You think you know me so well, don’t you?” the older vampire deplored.

 

Mingyu jeered at him. “I do know you, hyung.”

 

“If you do know me that well, why do you think I let your human live?” Joshua pulled something out of the pocket of his black robe, taking Mingyu’s hand and placing a rectangular, silver device on top of his open palm. 

 

The taller male observed the MP3 in his hand for a while, wincing at the thoughts racing through his mind. Why would Joshua let Soonyoung live?

 

There really was only one person who could answer that question. 

 

His brother had always been too much of an enigma to understand, too full of secrets. How would Mingyu really ever know what was truly going on in his brother’s head?

 

“Mingyu, you are still my brother,” Joshua continued softly. His voice held no venom nor any feigned expressions. Instead, Mingyu could hear a tenderness in his words. It was foreign and unwelcome, and that was how he knew it was genuine. “No matter how awful you think I am, no matter how much you hate me…you will always be my brother, and I would never do anything to hurt you.”

 

“Even if that meant keeping a human alive? Even if it meant endangering our entire family?” He was dubious, and he was still cautious, but his brother’s words were tugging at the strings of his dead heart, unraveling the seams and laying the whole damn thing open and unprotected...

 

...and Joshua seemed more than willing to fill his heart with years and years of harbored affection. “Yes, even that. If he had been any random human, things would have been a bit different. But this is no random human. He’s _special_ to you, and that's enough for me to spare his life.” 

 

“Did Jeonghan tell you?” Mingyu dared to ask. “About that night? At The Diamond Life?”

 

Joshua offered him a suggestive glance. “Surprisingly, no…he only ever briefly hinted at what happened, how you tried to best him, but I did hear something strange from my good friend, Jinwoo.”

 

Jinwoo. One of Park Jiyoung’s children from that night at the club. Of course one of them would have noticed.

 

“What did he say?” 

 

“That he saw you drag one of the human waiters out of the club. He said he would have followed you out, but he was rather…preoccupied at the time. It doesn’t take much for me to figure things out. All I had to do was fit two and two together.”

 

The younger vampire willed away the vivid memories of that night. Blood and sex. Humans and vampires. Park Jiyoung’s fledglings. The amount of dread he felt thinking Soonyoung was going to die in that wretched place that very night. Too much. It was all too much. He almost felt as though he were choking on the very air surrounding them. 

 

His brother perceived the discomfort in his expression and placed a consoling hand on his shoulder, squeezing ever so delicately. 

 

“Don’t worry about Jinwoo. You can trust him. He won’t harm a single hair on your pretty little human,” the auburn-haired vampire assured him. “Kwon Soonyoung, I believe?”

 

Mingyu nodded feebly. 

 

“Soonyoung…” The name rolled off his brother's tongue so graciously, so naturally. It sounded so good, far too good. It sounded even holy, rivaling their maker's own divine name.  His brother had uttered the name so virtuously, like the human was special to Joshua too now. “Does he make you happy, Mingyu?” 

 

“Yes, hyung,” the younger agreed almost immediately. He was so eager to let Joshua know just how joyous he felt around the human. “More than you will ever know.” 

 

“How important is this human to you?” his brother continued, regarding the illuminated candelabra after one of the lighted candles dimmed. 

 

Mingyu glanced at the burnt-out wick and the melted wax, not really paying it much heed. It was a bit odd for Joshua to get distracted by something trivial, but that was not as salient as the current issue at hand. “Important enough that I’m talking to you about him.”

 

Joshua hummed, contemplating for a second. “Have you ever drank from him?”

 

The taller vampire made a disgusted face at his brother for alluding such a thing. “No, I would never!”

 

The auburn-haired male laughed before offering him a placid smile. “Then, if he is that important to you, we need to protect him, don’t we?"

 

His brows knitted together, unsure if he really understood what his brother was trying to say. “ _We_ , hyung?”

 

“Yes,” Joshua concurred. “If he really is important to you, Soonyoung will eventually become a part of our family. It is a given.”

 

“Will mother allow it?” There was the slightest hint of desperation in his voice, hope that there was not just doom awaiting him and his human. “Would she really change him?”

 

 _For me?_ Surely, she would do that if he asked this of his own mother. 

 

“Trust me, Mingyu. Soonyoung will become one of us. He will. _We_ will make sure of that. _Together_.” 

 

 _Together_ , the word resonated so unnaturally in his ears, but at the same time, it felt so so good to hear that word. 

 

But questions still remained. The apprehension was still there. 

 

“Why now, hyung? Why now after all these years?” 

 

“Because I don’t want to lose you…” The answer was that simple - simple enough to be so complex, to hold so many unuttered words of adulation and empathy and kindness. Joshua’s voice had been silken and sweet and unadulterated, and that was all it took for the rest of Mingyu’s anger to dissipate.

 

“I’m sorry I was only ever cold to you but know that I want to change all that. I want us to be closer than ever before. What do you say, Mingyu? Let’s start anew.” His older brother took hold of both his hands, smiling up at him with only fondness and…dare he say it, love. It reminded him of the way Goo Hara would smile at him, all loving and warm. No hatred, no frigidness.

 

“Hyung, I…I don’t know what to say…” Mingyu had been wrong. He had been so wrong about Joshua. Kim Taehyung had been wrong. Everyone had been wrong. This whole time, all he had to do was talk to his brother - something he’d avoided for so long, thinking it would only bring forth a disastrous fate for his human. But his most winsome brother had been his greatest ally this entire time.

 

“You don’t have to say anything.” His grey eyes were crinkled at the corners, but they still reflected the goodness and trustworthiness that accompanied his every word. “Just let me meet him soon. I’d love to see who it is that makes my brother smile.”

 

Mingyu suddenly remembered his other siblings, a pensive thought halting the elation he felt. Both Tzuyu and Minnie would never hurt Soonyoung - he knew that for sure. His sisters were not violent and mulish, but he could not say the same for their eldest brother.

 

“What about Seungcheol-hyung? What if he tries to hurt Soonyoung?”

 

Joshua’s smile did not vacillate. He simply shook his head and chuckled. “I will personally deal with Seungcheol. Don’t even worry about what he might say or do. I am sure he will be thrilled to know we are gaining another family member soon.”

 

Mingyu grinned so widely it almost hurt. “Thank you, hyung! Thank you! I don’t know how I can ever repay you!”

 

He wrapped his arms around his brother, chest filled with wonderful relief and newfound hope. Whatever dark, bestial thing that had threatened to escape his mental bounds was now back in an iron cage, sealed off behind stronger bars…hopefully never to emerge again. 

 

Joshua returned the hug as tightly as he could, because this would probably be the first and last time Mingyu would ever want to embrace him. It was only right for him to savor such a monumental moment. It was just a shame that he had to spew out words of deceit to get him there, to finally have his brother hold him with endearment. 

 

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Jeonghan standing behind one of the bookshelves. Joshua winked in his direction, lips curling upward and eyes glinting with perversity. 

 

It was no surprise that Mingyu had not noticed the platinum-blond vampire enter the library, even when he’d made it painfully obvious by blowing out one of the candles, as he passed by them with inhumane speed. His little brother had always been too careless and much too unguarded, because he never had to worry about playing the game. He never had to worry about anything. Their mother had made sure of that, spoiling him rotten and leaving him improperly taught, and there was only so much he and Seungcheol could teach their youngest. 

 

But Joshua preferred it this way. He preferred that his brother remain weak and compliant and trusting. It made things so much easier. 

 

After all, Mingyu was not the only monster in their family. Joshua was just better at pretending he wasn’t one too.

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...just wanted to point something out. I'm sure some of you might be thinking, "why the heck is Soonyoung just going with everything? Is he that dumb?" To answer that, no, Hoshi is definitely not that stupid. I really just needed to say that cuz I kind of got frustrated myself after re-reading this chapter. Let me tell you guys. Love makes people fucking blind, and Hoshi may be partially blinded by his feelings, but there's more to it than that. I've been leaving little hints throughout the whole fic, and I'll eventually reveal it at the end of COE:Penance. 
> 
> Anyway, let me know what questions you guys have regarding the fic. That way, I can explain things a lot better at the end of the story. Like I said before, this whole universe is so intertwined with SVT, EXO, BTS, SuJu, f(x), Red Velvet, BP, SNSD, etc. storylines, and I don't want to miss out on anything important to the SVT part of the story. So let me know what you guys are thinking. 
> 
> Thank you for reading! <3 Be ready for some pain...Getting Closer, Getting Closer...SVT Comeback getting closer!!!!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for taking so long to update. I have no excuse other than these last two chapters are the most important ones in the story, and I had such high expectations for myself writing them. I wrote and rewrote them both at the same time, numerous times, because I wanted them to be perfect. But of course, that didn't happen. It was hard for me to churn it out the way I wanted to and thus, delays. So again, I am very sorry. Please enjoy!

 

 

 

 

_Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live._

 

_-Norman Cousins_

 

 

 

 

_“I want you to meet my family.”_

 

Mingyu grasped at Soonyoung’s hand, drawing him in closer as they climbed the stone-slab steps to Goo Hara’s mansion. There was a soft smile on the vampire’s lips and immeasurable fondness in his grey eyes as he peered down at the pale-skinned mortal beside him. 

 

It was a lovely sight to behold - his human within his maker’s domain, in all his gorgeousness and purity, lambent beneath the gloom of the nimbus-filled, star-less sky. Soonyoung was a glowing gem in the midst of rubble - venerated and precious, above everything and everyone in Mingyu’s dirty world. 

 

_“I want them to know, hyung. About you. About us.”_

 

Joshua had promised he would pave the way for them to be together. The older vampire had a way with his words, and Mingyu knew that if there was anyone who could convince their siblings to welcome a human into their family, it would be Joshua. Even their mother was highly perceptive to Joshua’s convictions. 

 

If all ended well…if his family ended up approving of their relationship and their mother agreed to turning Soonyoung, only then would he tell the boy of their true nature. Only then would Mingyu offer him life-everlasting. 

 

The human was the embodiment of perfection. His siblings would see it and so would their mother. They would understand. They would know why Mingyu needed the human in his life. 

 

_“I want them to know how much you mean to me.”_

 

Just for this special occasion, Soonyoung had borrowed a blue, pin-striped dress shirt and checkered slacks from Vernon - two of the most “normal”-looking garments the blond vampire owned. His bangs fell over his forehead in voluminous, textured strands, tresses still black and strikingly dark against the creamy color of his skin and the redness of his lips. His arm and leg muscles appeared much leaner these days, thanks to all the dance classes he started teaching. He’d been eating a lot healthier too, and his jaw was now sharp and angled, and he emanated a much stronger aura than ever before. Soonyoung looked tall and firm and enchanting, even just standing in the dark doing nothing remarkable. 

 

The boy with the frosty blue hair was now a noir-haired adonis, but his loving temperament and lustrous, brown eyes still remained the same. 

 

He gripped Mingyu’s hand tighter, hiding the visible nervousness in his face as best as he could. As Soonyoung had previously explained to him, this was his first time meeting someone’s family in such an intimate way. 

 

“Everything will be fine, hyung,” the vampire assured him.

 

The mortal nodded absently, looking around the white front portico with uncertainty painted on his face. “Uhm…Mingyu? I think I’ve been here before…”

 

“You’ve been here before?” Mingyu raised his brows questioningly, pondering on exactly where the boy’s confusion was stemming from. 

 

Humans never stepped foot onto his maker’s estate. It would be impossible for them to do so, unless they were taken there by someone who knew where the mansion was located, and their trusted confidants were comprised of very few vampires. Their home was closed off from the city and protected by dense foliage for a reason. “You must be mistaken, hyung.”

 

“No…no, I remember the glass windows and the black door without a doorbell. I had to knock on the door. I think I delivered Jajangmyeon here one time,” he answered honestly, rubbing the back of his head with incertitude. 

 

_I’ve been here before…_

 

How could that be?

 

“That’s not possible, hyung. Nobody in this house even ea-” Mingyu stopped himself mid-sentence, reigning in the shock of cognizance that flashed across his face for a brief second. He bit at his lip and forced another gentle smile. “Nobody in the house eats Jajangmyeon.”

 

“But I…I swear this is the same house…”

 

There was no reason for Soonyoung to be lying, but Mingyu would’ve known if a human had entered their abode. His siblings would’ve known as well, and they would’ve mentioned it to him…unless the boy had gone there while Mingyu had been in Iceland.

 

Even then, Seungcheol would’ve definitely done something. Jeonghan would've mentioned in passing if a human had been at their door. 

 

There was only one explanation.

 

Joshua.

 

A sharp sense of dread shot up his spine, paralyzing him with vicious trepidation.

 

What else was Joshua hiding from him?

 

The door opened abruptly, revealing the devil incarnate himself - dressed in a grey sweater and tight black pants, eyes glinting wickedly and cherry-stained lips curled into a beguiling smile.

 

“Hello,” the auburn-haired vampire greeted them with an uncharacteristically charming demeanor.

 

The nervousness in the human’s face melted away in an instant, and a wide grin replaced the frown on his lips.

 

“Jisoo-hyung!” The winsome vampire’s real name spilled from Soonyoung’s mouth with doubtless familiarity. Only a handful of vampires outside their family knew Joshua’s true name, and most of them were ancients either missing or dead.

 

For Joshua to give his real name to a human…it only meant one thing…one terrible, revolting thing that Mingyu couldn’t even think about without feeling sick to his stomach…

 

He was going to kill Soonyoung.

 

No…

 

No, that couldn’t be right. 

 

Joshua made a vow. He promised he would help. 

 

Joshua, his own brother, would never betray him like this. 

 

Joshua would never hurt him like this…

 

…Right?

 

“Hoshi-goon? You’re our Mingyu’s precious Soonyoungie?!” Joshua uttered in absolute delight, feigning surprise in his expression. 

 

It had to be fake. He had to have known exactly who Soonyoung was and what he meant to Mingyu. Otherwise, he would’ve ended the boy right when he’d arrived at the mansion the first time around. 

 

The boy blushed furiously, turning slightly to Mingyu and whispering, “I told you I’ve been here before.”

 

The agitation in the pit of his stomach only grew, and his hand instinctively tightened around Soonyoung’s. His eyes quickly darted back and forth between both his brother and his human, mind struggling to fit the pieces of the puzzle together. He needed answers - answers he knew he would not receive any time soon. He needed explanations, but he had to be careful. There will still so many things he had to protect the human from. 

 

He had to trust his brother. Joshua was the only one who could help him be with Soonyoung. Mingyu couldn’t do this without Joshua's guidance.

 

“So you’re Mingyu’s brother?” the boy continued, face flushed with vicious scarlet. 

 

“Why, yes I am! Such a small world we live in, Hoshi-goon!” came Joshua’s reply, voice dripping with artificial politeness and amazement. Mingyu knew when his brother was only putting on an act. He was the only one who ever seemed to catch the smallest hints of the older vampire’s deviousness. 

 

The tall vampire stared at his brother in perturbed silence, mouth pursed and jaw clenched tight, not daring to speak words that would only scare his human. 

 

“Do come in won’t you, Hoshi-goon? It’s starting to drizzle.”

 

Joshua took that chance to swiftly extract the boy from his hand, prying Mingyu’s fingers off with his superior strength. He dragged the mortal through the doorway just as the rain started pouring down from the darkened heavens.

 

“I had no idea you guys were brothers. You both look nothing alike!” Soonyoung explained, cheeks reddening further as Joshua hooked their arms together and ushered him through the grand foyer. 

 

The seraphic-faced vampire chuckled, glancing at his youngest brother for a millisecond - shining grey orbs twinkling in diablerie. “That’s what a lot of people say, but Mingyu and I were born from the _same_ mother, with the _same_ blood coursing through our veins.”

 

Soonyoung laughed uneasily. “I guess I should’ve figured that out the first time we met. You both have the same eye color…just like your cousin, Jeonghan. Now that I think about it, are you guys related to Minghao too? He has a similar color.”

 

The winsome vampire shook his head, fingers caressing the exposed skin on the boy’s arm - stroking him like a docile pet. “We are not of Chinese descent, but I wouldn’t doubt that we’d have some… _common ancestors_.”

 

Mingyu quietly walked behind them as they weaved through the house. The auburn-haired vampire deemed it necessary to show the boy their mother’s treasured items and rambled on about the history of every artifact they had on display.

 

Their maker was an avid collector of relics, and Joshua had always been the one tasked to retrieve them one way or another. So it made sense that he’d show them off every chance he got.

 

“This is the Blade of Shimatani,” his brother elaborated on one specific artifact, eyes glistening as he stared at one of their mother’s most prized valuables. 

 

The three of them were standing before a dagger mounted on a pedestal. Black-carved symbols surrounded the gold hilt, and the blade was protected by a golden sheath depicting a phoenix, the tips of its feathers covered in sapphires. “In ancient times, the Japanese used it as a weapon against the vicious creatures of the night. It’s the very last one in existence, so our mother was quite keen on having it in her possession.”

 

Soonyoung listened attentively to every word like the well-mannered and thoughtful person he was, asking a few questions here and there, while Mingyu kept his mouth shut the entire time, unsure of what to think and what to do.

 

Joshua was completely unbothered and paid no attention to his brother’s seething. He was acting as if everything was perfectly fine…as if he was not hiding a million secrets from his youngest sibling. 

 

All Mingyu could do for now was move forward with their plans. 

 

“Who is that?” The human pointed to a giant portrait on the wall, right above the fireplace in the living room. It was the only painting they had on display in the entire house. 

 

Joshua looked up at the framed canvas, smile slightly dropping from his lips. “That is our wonderful mother.”

 

“She’s so beautiful,” Soonyoung muttered in awe-inspired praise. 

 

“The most beautiful in the world,” his winsome brother added tersely. Mingyu barely missed the dryness in his tone and wondered where this concealed derision had stemmed from. 

 

“Now, then. I think you should meet the rest of our family.” Just like that, Joshua’s odious smile and twinkling grey gems were back. 

 

Looking at it all now…back to this very moment, Mingyu should have known. He should have never brought Soonyoung to their home - to this broken house of lies and secrets and cruelty. He should have known better than to trust Joshua. 

 

If he had known what horror awaited them…what woeful and disturbing path they were heading down, Mingyu would have killed himself the night he met the human. He would have rather died than allow Soonyoung to face the pain that was to come.

 

In hindsight, if he hadn’t been so selfish and so stupid, maybe he could have saved Soonyoung from the monster inside him.

 

 

* * *

 

 

The soothing smell of rain and earth filled their lungs as the three males made their way to the greenhouse. It was the grand product of Mingyu’s endless years of tending to their mother’s garden. The whole space had been unkept when he’d first arrived at the estate long ago, and the brunet had taken it upon himself to create a vibrant world out of the barren ground - a lurid and drastically different place to make up for the bleakness of the main house. 

 

Bright lights in frosted vases illuminated the wood-covered, bluestone walkway, and all around them was nothing but green grass and bushes of different colored flowers - sweet alyssums, roses, marigolds, lilies, dahlias, chrysanthemums, hyacinths and so many others he’d carefully planted and nurtured through the years. There was even a small lighted pond and waterfall right next to the shrub-covered entrance to the glass-panel greenhouse.

 

Soonyoung took in his surroundings as they walked, gaze soft and filled with fascination. “This is amazing! I’ve never seen anything like this before…”

 

Happiness swirled deep in his chest at the mortal’s generous compliment. The brunet allowed himself a small smile, despite the disquietude he felt.

 

Joshua opened the door to the greenhouse. There were hanging plants and more flowers decorating the interior, but the area had been remodeled to serve as a place for relaxation and reading. Light-strings brightened the whole room in blues, pinks, and purples. Right above them, the rain gently pattered against the glass-roofing and served as placating music in the quiet and calm atmosphere. They were surrounded by cold, but not unpleasantly so, even as their breaths fogged in the air.

 

Five impeccably-dressed vampires were waiting for them in the center of the greenhouse. Tzuyu and Minnie were seated together on the white-cushioned, woven sofa, chatting away in their own little world. Jeonghan was standing beside one of the bookshelves, chuckling and whispering next to a giggling Lisa about god knows what. Seungcheol, in his usual displeased expression, leaned against the glass windows far from the main entrance. His arms were crossed over his chest, and he paid no heed to the newcomers. The rest of them, however, stopped what they were doing to peer at the human in their midst. 

 

Mingyu could see no hunger in their eyes. They had all been warned in advance to quench their thirsts and fill their bellies before the human’s arrival, and he was thankful that they’d followed Joshua’s orders. A human - especially one harboring a very potent, saccharine scent - in the same room with seven hungry vampires was a recipe for disaster. 

 

With the exception of Jeonghan’s amused expression, what Mingyu did see was perplexity on pale faces. Even though Joshua had told them exactly who they would be meeting tonight, they still seemed to gape at the mortal in front of them with surprise. He couldn’t understand why though. They had all agreed to keep an open mind (although Mingyu doubted Seungcheol had willingly concurred to do so) and to refrain from doing anything that may hurt the boy. So their staggered looks were rather questionable, but then again, the youngest remembered that he too had been dazed when he first laid eyes upon the human. Maybe…just maybe, like him, they had been stunned and smitten by the human’s unearthly, beauteous presence. 

 

Soonyoung looked back at them nervously and then to Mingyu for reassurance. 

 

“Well, go on, Mingyu,” Joshua urged him playfully, letting go of the human’s arm and pushing the timorous boy forward. 

 

The brunet lifted a thumb to carefully and affectionately rub at the human’s flushed cheek, before stepping up to face the rest of his family.

 

“This is Kwon Soonyoung. I have brought him here today, because I wish to formally introduce him to all of you. He is very dear to me, so I humbly request that you all treat him with respect and kindness, just as you would for any other member of our family,” he stated boldly, loud and clear with his invocation. 

 

His words appeared to jostle them out of their collective stupefaction. Minnie was the first to get up, grinning as she approached them with unbridled exuberance. 

 

She reached for Soonyoung’s hands, tenderly clutching them in her own. “My name is Nicha, Mingyu’s second eldest sister, but you can call me Minnie. I’m very pleased to meet your acquaintance, Soonyoung-ssi.”

 

The mortal gave her a quick and jittery bow in return, face as red as a tomato. “It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Minnie-ssi! Mingyu mentioned so many wonderful things about you.”

 

Tzuyu was the next to come forward, much more timidly than usual. She struggled to maintain eye contact, looking away shyly whilst attempting to keep a blank expression on her face. “I’m Tzuyu, Mingyu’s oldest sister…It’s been a while since we’ve met someone new…”

 

“It’s nice to meet you, Tzuyu-ssi! You’re as beautiful as Mingyu described you,” Soonyoung answered bashfully, bowing to her as well. 

 

Lisa came up to their growing crowd, smiling at the human with an unexpected overtone of friendliness. Besides Seungcheol, Mingyu had expected her to be the least enthusiastic about welcoming a human to their shared home. “Pleased to meet you, little one. My name is Lalisa. I am no sister of Mingyu's, but I guess you can consider us distant relatives.”

 

“And I certainly hope you remember me,” Jeonghan interposed, making his way next to Joshua. 

 

The human beamed at the familiar face. “Of course, Jeonghan-ssi! You’re Mingyu’s favorite cousin!” 

 

The brunet scoffed, rolling his eyes as Jeonghan started laughing boisterously.

 

“I most certainly am!” 

 

Their group ended up in a fit of laughter, and as much as the situation was far from ideal, Mingyu felt his dead heart swell as he glanced at all the wide smiles around him. 

 

When was the last time their family smiled and laughed like this? 

 

Seungcheol stubbornly remained in his corner, mutely surveying from where he stood, and Mingyu wouldn’t have expected anything else. He could not worry about his oldest brother at the moment, because the vampires surrounding his human were already enough for him to worry about. 

 

Six pairs of grey eyes were settled on the human in the middle of their circle. Soonyoung was growing bolder by the minute, sharing with them stories from odd jobs he’d taken on and peculiar people he’d met at his university. Mingyu observed as the vampires around the mortal all gazed upon him ardently, as if the very paragon of sanctity was before them. Even Joshua looked absolutely besotted.

 

Why were they acting this way?

 

 _Let me tell you about the story of Kim Yukwon…_ Kim Taehyung’s voice echoed in his ears.

 

Mingyu winced, eyes squeezing shut as a nebulous memory entered his musings. The world began spinning slowly, and as he reopened his eyes, the faces of his family members started morphing into different beings. The youngest stumbled back, as his red eyes focused on the smiling human. 

 

His ears were ringing, Kim Taehyung’s warped voice still resounding in his mind. He was looking at Soonyoung’s smile, but it wasn’t _his_ smile. There were fangs in his smirk, and there was liquid silver in his irises. There was no redness to his face - no signs of mortality…no signs of humanity…

 

_Let me tell you about the story of Kim Yukwon…_

 

_Kim Yukwon._

 

_…paid the price with blood and fire…_

 

_Kim Yukwon._

 

_…a power so old and so dark…_

 

_Yukwon._

 

_…he’s coming…_

 

_Kwon._

 

_…something is coming…for all of us…_

 

_Kwon Soonyoung._

 

“Mingyu.” 

 

The faces disappeared, and there were no more fangs in between Soonyoung’s lips. He blinked away the red in his eyes, vision slowly clearing once more. 

 

“ _Mingyu_ ,” Seungcheol repeated sternly, the harshness in his voice forcing Mingyu back into reality. 

 

When had Seungcheol approached them? He had been sitting in the corner just a moment ago. 

 

“Do you really think this will end well? For any of us?” he sneered, his pent-up anger leaking into his words. 

 

“Hyung, Joshua-hyung said-”

 

The eldest grabbed him by the collar, callously pulling him down to eye level. “I don’t care what bullshit Joshua has fed you! Do you really think our mother would approve of this?!”

 

“Seungcheol, let go of him,” Joshua interrupted, voice light but obviously peeved.

 

The eldest only growled at the winsome vampire and continued snarling at Mingyu. “Mother is going to kill him! Don’t think for a second that she won’t!  She will bleed him dry, and then, she will kill every last one of us for disobeying her rules!”

 

Seungcheol pushed Mingyu away with brute force, ignoring how the brunet crashed into one of the potted plants, before grabbing hold of Soonyoung’s arm. “I don’t care who you are! I will not let you destroy our family!”

 

Soonyoung yelped, pain shooting up his wrist. He fought against the vampire, desperately pulling back, but he could not stop Seungcheol from dragging him out the door.

 

“Soonyoung!” The youngest sibling was quick to get up and run after them. 

 

Mingyu rushed outside and into the pouring rain. His hand tightly clasped onto Seungcheol’s shoulder, fingers practically clawing into his brother’s flesh to stop the eldest vampire from moving.  “Hyung! Listen to me!”

 

Seungcheol threw him aside, and Mingyu fell onto one of the wooden pillars of the walkway. The structure collapsed, but Jeonghan was fast enough to haul the tall brunet away before the beams could topple over him. 

 

“You poor soul,” the platinum-haired vampire whispered, rain soaking the both of them as he released Mingyu from his protective embrace. 

 

The brunet vampire whipped his head around, searching frantically for someone he could not find. “Where is Joshua-hyung? I need Joshua-hyung…he…he promised he would help.”

 

Lisa knelt beside his seated body, frowning sadly at his pitiful state. She brought a hand to cup his cheek, tears running down her face and mixing with the rain drops falling from her hair. “Listen to me, darling. He is beautiful, Mingyu. He is so so beautiful, but I’m afraid you two are not meant to be together. There is a certain order in the world. Where you stand and where he stands…this forbidden affair will bring nothing but chaos. Your story will only end in tragedy.”

 

“Oppa, stop! Let go of him!” Minnie wailed, following them out the garden and into the rain. “Give them a chance! They just want to be happy!” 

 

“Nicha, stop!” Tzuyu ran after their sister, raising her voice in an effort to stop Minnie from further invoking their eldest brother’s anger.

 

Thunder rattled through the sky, the rain pouring down harder as the three vampires disappeared with the human inside the mansion. 

 

Mingyu cringed and looked back at Lisa, moving her hand away gently and shaking his head. 

 

He had to show them. 

 

He had to show them how much the boy truly meant to him, and if he had to fight his own brother to do so, then so be it.

 

“You’re wrong,” he retaliated, eyes filling with bloody red. “Humans are not beneath us. Humans and vampires can be together.” 

 

The brunet got up and ran into the house at inhumane speed. If he had stayed longer, Mingyu would have heard the rest of what Lisa had to say. 

 

The slender female grimly turned to Jeonghan, grief well-written in her pewter orbs. “He is not beneath us. He is not beneath Mingyu.”

 

Jeonghan nodded in understanding. He’d known since he first laid eyes on the human. “They cannot be together, because Mingyu is the one beneath him…”

 

Mingyu made it to the grand foyer before Seungcheol could, clothes dripping water on the pristine marble floor. He stood before the main door, anger wild and burning in his veins. 

 

Their mother’s magic would not allow them to harm each other, but as long as Mingyu had no intention of maiming Seungcheol, he could fight his brother and make him listen.

 

Soonyoung’s face was still grimacing in pain. He was thrashing and twisting his own arm, struggling to free himself, but he could not remove the powerful vampire’s crushing grip from his wrist. He turned to Mingyu with tears in his eyes, silently pleading for help, for relief from the unrelenting agony. 

 

“Let him go, hyung,” he growled in warning. “Unhand him before I make you.”

 

Seungcheol bared his fangs at his brother. “I am doing what is best for this family!”

 

Mingyu stared the older vampire down, mouth twisted into an ugly snarl. “I said, let him go!”

 

He could feel it again - the dark, sordid thing inside him that longed for freedom…for control. The hideous part of him that made his fingertips tingle with untapped power, Mingyu could feel himself succumbing to it as he watched the tears run down Soonyoung’s face. 

 

The tall vampire took long strides forward, eyes unblinking and crazed, body prepared to strike, and Seungcheol was ready for him.

 

A sharp gasp from Minnie brought everyone’s actions to a screeching halt. Her eyes were wide in disbelief as she stared at the figure standing behind Mingyu.

 

Suddenly, the air around them left colder.

 

“My children, what is going on here?” 

 

There it was, the honey-sweet voice Mingyu had not heard in over a year. 

 

Their mother was home. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

Mingyu was beyond elated to see the petite woman in satin white. Hearing her voice had reeled him back in, sating his parched body like an oasis in an arid desert and driving the darkness back into the shrouded corners of his mind. Her presence brought upon a sense of euphoria within him. He was overjoyed to be in her presence again. How could he not be? 

 

Goo Hara was his mother - the alpha female of her race, the epitome of supremacy, the one who gave him a second chance at life. Her face was almost as white as porcelain, like white marble carved with the timeless beauty of an young woman. Her brown tresses were the same color as Mingyu’s, but the length was well past her shoulders, glossy curls braided with pink and white flowers. Her mouth was small and curved with a perfect cupid’s bow, stained red like fresh blood in the center of her lips. Her frame was slim and lithe - the envy of even the most beautiful models of the world - with curves that dipped dramatically at her narrow waist and slender legs that ended at dainty ankles and red Manolo heels. 

 

Her eyes were like two grey moonstones, encased within bold, almond-shaped eyes and full, wispy black lashes, glowing with an unspeakable power. 

 

She was a force to be reckoned with, even after she’d stepped down from her throne so many years ago. She was a woman reborn from the moon and the blood of war. She had as many friends from high up as she had enemies beneath her. 

 

This was his maker, his mother, his savior.

 

How could he not be happy to see her? 

 

But as much as Mingyu was delighted to see her, he was also terrified that she was here. 

 

No one had expected her to arrive that night. Joshua had said she wouldn’t be back for another four months or so, but their mother was here now - lips turned downward into a scowl and gaze sharp and cold as she leered at the human in her home. This hadn’t been part of their plan. She was to be eased into the situation slowly, after their siblings had grown more comfortable with the human, and then, Joshua would gradually accustom her to the idea of turning Soonyoung into a vampire. That had been the safest route to take, but now, Mingyu was treading on dangerous waters. 

 

Not another word had been uttered since she’d arrived. All the vampires of their house were now in the living room. The only person missing was Joshua, and he still had not reappeared even after their mother’s return.

 

Seungcheol was the first one brave enough to speak. “Mother, I-”

 

She put a finger up to stop him. “Why is _he_ here? In my home?”

 

The ebony-haired vampire looked away, face pained. “He is Mingyu’s…”

 

“His what?”

 

“Mother,” Mingyu spoke up, biting his lip nervously. He had only seen his mother angry once, and it had been a horrible sight to witness. “Soonyoung is someone very dear to me.”

 

“He’s a _human_ ,” she enunciated in a peeved tone, her grey eyes still focused solely on Soonyoung. “What purpose do you have for bringing a human here?”

 

The tallest vampire hesitated for a moment. He knew that what he was about to say would only make her angrier, but he had no other choice. Mingyu needed her to know. She deserved the unhindered truth from him after all. “I wanted everyone to meet him, because he is mine. He is the lov-”

 

“No,” she whispered harshly. The one word that escaped her lips exuded three hundred years worth of pain, of buried disappointment and agony and betrayal. 

 

She did not want to hear him say those words.

 

“No…you are incapable of that…”

 

Mingyu sighed, his own heart cracking under the weight of his guilt. “I thought so too, but I am, mother. I am capable, and I know this is all so sudden…but I am asking for your blessi-”

 

“Blessing?! You think I would bless this atrocious affair?! This courtship spun by the devil’s deception?”

 

Mingyu took a step back, flinching from her unkind words. “Mother, what are you saying?”

 

“Open your eyes, Mingyu! This human has fooled you into believing you are feeling something you can’t!” She stepped towards him, lifting her hands up to cradle his face in desperation. “Listen to me, my sweet dear Mingyu. You are not capable of these emotions. You were reborn without that side of your humanity left, and I still loved you for it. Don’t you love me, my child? Am I not the only one you love?”

 

“I do love you, mother.” Mingyu swallowed thickly. “But I can’t love you the way you want me to. I can never love you the way I love him.”

 

Soonyoung gaped and trembled at the words he heard, fresh tears spilling down to join the dried up trails on his cheeks. “You love…Y-You really do love me?”

 

He hated that the human had to hear it this way but finally admitting how he felt brought blinding exoneration upon him. 

 

_Of course I do._

 

_Since the day I met you._

 

_I’ve loved you everyday since then._

 

_And I’ll love you for every tomorrow that comes._

 

There was so much more he wanted to say, but the words were stuck in his throat. 

 

He couldn’t speak after watching his mother’s face descend into sorrowful conveyance. She was holding back her tears, clenching her jaw as her despondency relapsed back into blazing hatred. 

 

Her hands fell from his face, and all he could find in her grey eyes were unfiltered anger and disgust.

 

“No…no…” she murmured, unable to accept his confession.

 

Hara turned toward the human, eyes turning red, and stalked him like a tigress carefully approaching her prey. 

 

Soonyoung backed away from her slowly, aware of her ferocious and malicious intent, until he was pressed against a wall.

 

“Mother, you’re scaring him.” Mingyu caught her arm, and she only needed to flick her small wrist to throw his grip off with a force almost as strong as Seungcheol’s. “Mother, please don’t hurt him!”

 

“ _Don’t interfere_ ,” she stated, glaring at him over her shoulder.

 

The power of her omniscient command felt like shackles bounding his hands and feet, pain spiking up his body as he attempted to move. 

 

“You…” she sneered at the quivering human. “You've ruined _everything_ …”

 

“Mother, please don’t do this!” Mingyu cried, looking to his siblings for help. But they could only turn their gazes away from him sadly, shamefully. Even Jeonghan and Lisa were looking away uncomfortably, because none of them could offer the aid he needed.

 

There was only one person who could, but he was still no where to be seen.

 

Where was Joshua? Why had Mingyu been abandoned when he needed Joshua the most?

 

Soonyoung’s eyes widened at the hostility erupting from the former vampire queen. The poor boy probably couldn’t even understand where her resentment was coming from. There was still so much he knew nothing of. He didn’t deserve to be treated this way.

 

Hara raised her hands, nails preparing to dig into the supple flesh of the human’s neck. 

 

“Mother, please don't…please!!!” Mingyu bellowed, bones searing as he fought against her command, but he could not break himself out of it.

 

He realized, now with a mountain of regret on his shoulders, that he should have never trusted his most winsome brother.

 

He’d only been fed intricately-crafted lies from the very beginning.

 

Mingyu realized that Joshua had only wanted to hurt him. 

 

No, Joshua wanted to hurt Soonyoung, and he made sure their youngest would have to watch the boy suffer in the hands of their own maker.

 

He was a cruel, sadistic snake through and through, and Mingyu was never going to forgive him for this.

 

Never.

 

Their mother’s hands enclosed the human’s neck, ready to twist his head off as slowly and as painfully as possible. 

 

Three knocks reverberated through their home. 

 

Hara froze in place, eyes widened at the intrusion, and retracted her hands in annoyance.

 

Everyone turned to the entrance of their home. The door creaked open, revealing three pairs of red eyes smoldering in the dark.

 

“Hello, Goo Hara.” 

 

Kim Hyunah - leader of the death dealers - stepped into the candle-lit foyer and smirked at the owner of the estate. “It’s been a while. We have so much to talk about…”

 

 

* * *

 

 

Everyone in the vampire world knew of Kim Hyunah. 

 

To be more specific, everyone in the vampire world feared Kim Hyunah. Maybe even more than they feared their own makers and leaders. She was the reason Queen Seolhyun, her sister, had managed to hold onto her position for so long.

 

The red-haired woman was a fiend with an affinity for blood and torture, spending centuries tormenting both vampires and humans in every way she can fathom. That was why she was the head death dealer. It was not a coveted post, but it gave her power and control over others that even the council members could never possess. No one was as vicious as her nor as loyal to the queen as she. 

 

All her fledglings shared her fixation with suffering. Each of them had been carefully selected while they were human, and they all bore the same resemblance to her foul disposition.

 

Kim Hyunah was sitting across Goo Hara on the plush couch, legs crossed over one another beneath her revealing black dress. She was peering up at the black-haired human standing close to Mingyu, smiling at him with a disturbing pleasantness. The human kept his eyes down, cheeks a deep crimson as he focused on the marble floor, fearful of angering someone else.

 

Behind her stood her two most favored fledglings - Hyojong, her scrawny blond lover and Dino, her youngest child.

 

Mingyu had never met Dino before, but he knew of him from eavesdropping on Jeonghan’s late morning gossiping with Minnie. The short vampire was a newborn, turned only a month ago, but he was already named Hyunah’s prodigy - her greatest creation - and for a good reason. The fledgling wielded the power of nightmares, conjuring up images of one’s worst fears and toying with them to the point of madness. It was the perfect gift for a death dealer, and Dino was said to be just as cruel as his mother.

 

Like Hyunah, he was staring at Soonyoung, but his gaze was much more alarming than his maker’s. His eyes were red with hunger.

 

“I’m taking Soonyoung home,” Mingyu immediately said, grasping at the boy’s hand.

 

“No,” Hyunah stated, giggling before reaching up to rub at her fledgling’s cheek. “Dino won’t bite. Let the human boy stay. He’s a very pretty thing to look at.”

 

Her newborn gulped down tensely, struggling to subdue his thirst.

 

Soonyoung’s heart was racing quicker and quicker against his rib cage. Mingyu could feel it from their entwined hands, but what exactly was going on in the boy’s mind, the vampire could only imagine.

 

“To what do I owe you this unwanted visit, Hyunah?” Hara interposed, brow raised as she leaned back into her seat, tapping her fingers impatiently on her black velvet arm chair. 

 

The redhead twirled her hair with a single digit, smiling coyly. “Blood for blood.”

 

Mingyu sharply turned to his mother, stunned and speechless. 

 

Blood for blood was the price to pay for a crime against another vampire, and a crime against the Queen of Seoul carried an even greater punishment.

 

What had their maker done while she’d been gone?

 

Goo Hara pursed her lips, fingers curling into a fist. “What happened in Russia was an accident. She knows that.”

 

“Still,” Hyunah continued, flipping her curls over her black leather top. “Still, my sister - our _queen_ \- wants blood for blood. Danila was one of her most cherished lovers, and now, she demands compensation. She demands punishment.”

 

It was all blatantly clear. The queen demanded death in the House of Goo Hara.

 

Their maker kept mum for a few seconds, thinking over something deeply, before standing up and sighing. “And so…she will have it. When does she want it?”

 

“Before the sun reaches it’s highest point in the sky.” 

 

Hyunah’s proclamation had Minnie bursting into sobs. Tzuyu wrapped her arms around her sister, pulling her close to comfort her, but even she failed to keep a strong facade on her face. 

 

Mingyu felt his undead heart disintegrating into tiny pieces. He feared for his mother. He feared for his siblings. How would they survive without her? 

 

Seungcheol - he had never seen him in such melancholia. The eldest seemed dazed and robbed of the desire to live.

 

But Hara was unfazed by their reactions. “And how?” 

 

“Just as her beloved Danila died - death by the sun.” Hyunah smiled up at Dino, and he chuckled back at her in cold-hearted glee.

 

Death by the sun. The most painful death of all.

 

Seungcheol fell to his knees before their sire, head hung low. “Let me perish in your place, mother! I cannot bear to watch you die.”

 

Her face remained vacuous as she stared at the top of her eldest’s head. “Stand up, Seungcheol. Neither you nor I will be dying again today.”

 

The ebony-haired male looked up, eyes shimmering with unshed tears. “But you said-”

 

“I did,” she interjected, gaze moving to another person in the room.

 

“Then who?”

 

Seungcheol followed her eyes, and soon...everyone was looking at Mingyu.

 

“W-What? Wait, no…” Soonyoung’s voice shook, clutching the vampire’s hand tighter, unwilling to let go. He’d caught on to what was happening. “You can’t. You can't…”

 

“Kim Mingyu, my failure of a fledgling,” Goo Hara announced, like a herald for death in the darkest of nights. “He is my chosen sacrifice.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

There was only Mingyu and Soonyoung in the darkened room. The place served as a haven for painting during the day. For years, the vampire had created many pieces of art in that room, only for them to stashed away in the basement to be forgotten. Their mother never really liked hung artwork on her walls. 

 

Now, this room was to serve as his sanctum for the night, for his final moments of undead life. In the morning, he was to burn before the death dealers and his family members in that very same room, whose casement windows were shielded by thick, heavy drapes. 

 

Soonyoung had been allowed to stay with him there, but it was not to appease Mingyu’s mind.

 

The human had been shoved into the room with him as punishment, to torture him further in his last few waking hours. 

 

The boy was in utter misery, bawling his eyes out with no signs of stopping any time soon. 

 

Mingyu held him against his chest, his own tears glistening down his face.

 

“Soonyoung, I love you…I’ve always loved you…”

 

He repeated the words over and over again with a painful smile on his face. He was finally free to say those words, and it made him happy.

 

Soonyoung pushed at him, glaring at Mingyu through watery brown eyes.

 

“Stop! Stop saying it,” the human pleaded. “We promised not to say it. Not until the end…when it’ll all be over, and you can forget about me.”

 

Forget? How could he ever forget about someone he loved so dearly?

 

“This _is_ the end, Soonyoung…” Mingyu uttered gently.

 

“But…But I was supposed to go first! I was the one who was supposed to die first. I don’t want you to go, Mingyu-yah…”

 

There was so much Soonyoung didn’t understand. He couldn’t because Mingyu never explained anything to him. It was all his fault really.

 

Mingyu didn’t want to think of anything else now. He refused to keep pondering and pondering on endless thoughts, when he had his whole world in his arms right now. 

 

This was all that mattered now. 

 

He would die in the morning, and as per vampire law, Soonyoung could not be harmed. They would have to rid him of his memories of Mingyu, but he would live on. He would find another to love. Hopefully, it would be someone who would love him more than Mingyu ever could. He would have children and a warm home and someone to grow old with - all the things Mingyu would never be able to give him.

 

“I have to. She is my mother. This is what she wants,” the brunet vampire explained. 

 

“She can’t do this! Please, Mingyu! Please, don’t leave me…”

 

He reached for the boy’s nape and pulled him close to whisper in his ear...to bequeath the boy his pledge of undying love - words he had originally planned to confess with. “I will love you all my life. Until all of me is gone…until I am nothing but ash and dust…and when we meet again someday, you’ll remember that I am yours. Because nothing, not even time, can ever destroy my love for you…”

 

“B-but if you die…,” Soonyoung whispered back, as Mingyu buried his face into the crook of the boy’s neck. “When you’re gone…how do you expect me to live if you’re taking my heart with you?”

 

Suddenly, there was only silence and cold. It was so cold that he could not even feel the warmth of Soonyoung’s body.

 

“Mingyu,” his mother’s voice rang eerily.

 

Goo Hara appeared in front of him, clear and bright while everything else dissolved into murky shadows. She looked like a deity from the heavens, immaculate and otherworldly. She was the light in the bleakness of his vision.

 

His mind was wiped clear, emptied and filled with nothing but her beautiful image. 

 

“ _Drink, my child_ ,” she commanded him sweetly. “ _Drink until you can no more._ ”

 

Her words made his eyes flutter and his heart leap. She sounded so kind and so tender.

 

“Drink what, mother?” Mingyu asked in his hazy stupor.

 

“What you’ve been craving all this time,” she answered simply, reddened lips spreading into a duplicitous smile. 

 

All he saw was a human in his arms, with a face he could not see…but a neck that pulsed with fresh blood. He did as she commanded. His elongated fangs pierced through the turgid skin, and red liquid burst into his mouth, flowing over his taste buds like a warm river.

 

“That’s it, my child. _Drink until he is dead_ ,” Hara urged him on. 

 

He followed her command, grip holding the thrashing human still as he drained the boy of his life essence. 

 

Mingyu greedily sucked him dry. His blood was richer and far more succulent than anything he’d ever tasted before.

 

“Don’t let her control you,” the boy mumbled weakly, voice so familiar it made his bones ache.

 

Then, the haze was gone, and Mingyu awoke from his master’s exhortation. 

 

He pulled back his fangs and released the human, and Soonyoung's body dropped to the floor in a heap. 

 

It was Soonyoung. 

 

He drank from Soonyoung.

 

He killed Soonyoung.

 

_Why?_

 

“Why?”

 

The vampire fell to his knees, slowly breaking down into choked sobs and harrowed cries. “Why would you make me do this?!”

 

“Because this is your penance,” she answered heartlessly, before turning away and leaving him in the vicious cold.

 

Like a ghost, Joshua emerged from the shadows after her, footsteps light and soundless. The auburn-haired vampire scrutinized the body carefully, paying no heed to his suffering brother, and lifted Soonyoung up into his arms. He said nothing to Mingyu and left the room cradling the human like a precious baby doll.

 

“Let’s get you changed, Hoshi-goon. Your attire does not suit a funeral,” Mingyu heard his most winsome brother say before he disappeared, cooing at the dead boy like a depraved psychopath.

 

Soonyoung never stood a chance against his kind. 

 

The dark was now his only comfort, and there was only death to look forward to at sunrise.

  

_I will love you all my life. Until all of me is gone…until I am nothing but ash and dust…and when we meet again someday, you’ll remember that I am yours. Because nothing, not even time, can ever destroy my love for you…_

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fuck. So like, one more chapter to go... 
> 
> Here's some fun facts about how this story evolved (I'm sorry. This is only way I can console you guys TT^TT):  
> 1.) When I first entered the fandom, I thought Mingyu was the maknae. That little mistake inspired me to make him the youngest in Goo Hara's family. Sorry, Dino!  
> 2.) I thought Seungkwan was the leader, and then I found out it was Seungcheol, so of course I made S.Coups the eldest. That and VerKwan is just so damn cute. I might make them a companion fic for COE.  
> 3.) I watched a lot of variety shows while making the initial draft, and that's how Vernon ended up being Hoshi's roommate and one of Mingyu's friends. Also, their interactions on shows inspired me to make The8 and Mingyu bicker a lot in the fic. HAHAHA.  
> 4.) I knew right from the start that Wonwoo was one of SVT's visuals with Mingyu, so I made them BFFs LOL. And I pretty much decided on who Wonwoo will end up with. This one is actually going to be a surprise, but I think you guys will be able to tell soon. There's only Dino and DK left so.... XD  
> 5.) DWC 2x on Weekly Idol was the first SVT video I ever watched, and Hoshi was the first person who caught my eye. So of course, he became my bias and one of the main characters of this fic.  
> 6.) Highlight is my favorite SVT MV of all time. Cannot elaborate on that anymore.  
> 7.) Songs that I listened to while developing and writing the storyline: SVT's If I, DWC, Highlight, Run to You. Iggy Azalea's Savior (surprise, surprise). So many cluuuuueeeeesssss. Ahhhhhhhhh.
> 
> See you in the final chapter. I need sleep.
> 
> Again. I'm sorry.


	10. Chapter 10

 

 

 

 

_Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live._

 

_-Norman Cousins_

 

 

 

 

Kim Mingyu did not fear death.

 

He had already died once before, many centuries ago in his hometown of Anyang, at the age of nineteen. 

 

Death had been his liberation from the burden of humanity, and in dying, he had transcended past impermanence - free to subsist without the manacles of a hapless being. 

 

Death had always been his kind friend.

 

What Mingyu feared was what came after death.

 

The vampire opened his icy grey eyes, gazing up from where he was kneeling. Behind the thick black curtains in front of him, Eos had already bid adieu. In his stead, Helios awaited, bright and blazing mercilessly against the heavens - ready to claim his damned soul.

 

A small, sad smile tugged at his lips.

 

At least his family would not let him die alone. His beautiful and timid sister, Tzuyu, stared back at him in choked desolation. They had always been the closest out of all his siblings. Right by her side was Minnie, his sibling with the softest heart, sobbing into her handkerchief in tiny, pained gasps. His most winsome brother, Joshua, kept a straight face as he stood next to his two sisters. There was not an ounce of sadness in his eyes, and Mingyu couldn’t help but laugh deep inside. Joshua had always been too much of an enigma to build a proper relationship with, and his calculating mind was probably already thinking of finding Mingyu’s replacement. His oldest brother, Seungcheol remained sullen and, of all people, refused to look at him. Mingyu wanted to ask him why, but there was not enough time for conversation now - not after everything that’s happened. There were more faces he needed to see before his time was up.

 

Vernon was there too. Though they were not brothers, they were very good friends. He was glad Vernon had come to say goodbye. The younger male looked impossibly guilt-stricken, even though none of this was his fault. In fact, Mingyu felt nothing but gratefulness for his friend, because it was Vernon who brought to him the greatest gift a person could ever receive - one far greater than immortality itself.

 

His best friend Wonwoo, on the other hand, held suppressed anger in his blood red eyes. He was furious about Mingyu’s death sentence. If Wonwoo’s maker had not been there to bind him - to prevent him from interfering, he probably would’ve lashed out at everyone in the room a long time ago and maybe even killed someone in rage.

 

Finally, his eyes found Goo Hara’s. Just like his human death, she was looking down at him - immaculate and flawless in her favorite white dress. But this time, there was no warmth in her expression. Her face remained blank despite knowing she would soon be losing one of her children.

 

“This is your penance,” his maker proclaimed in her honey voice - sticky and sweet but devoid of any emotion.

 

This was his punishment. 

 

Mingyu had always been her greatest disappointment, for he could never love her the way she wanted him to. He was a failure of a fledgling, because unlike his siblings, he was so untrue to what he'd been created for.

 

He was supposed to be his mother's mate, the perfect mate to last an eternity. That was why she had turned him in the first place. 

 

But Mingyu was an anomaly, and he fell in love with someone else.

 

He fell in love with the human boy with frosty blue hair, who made him feel things he’d never felt before.

 

Now, his mother hated him, and he could not blame her.

 

Mingyu could only nod in silent acceptance as he stood up slowly.

 

His eyes swept the entire room one last time, looking for one last face to remember.

 

The vampire needed to see his human in his final moment - this impossibly sublime being, whose eyes glistened in brown instead of red. Pure and kind and warm - nothing like the cold people who stood around him in this room.... 

 

...the person he loved more than anyone else in the entire world.

 

A crippling pain blossomed in his chest, far more agonizing than any pain he’d ever experienced. Images of blood and fear and harrowed cries flashed before him - the memories suffocating him with contrition and despair, and tears finally ran down his face.

 

Of course the love of his life would not be there to say farewell.

 

Soonyoung was already dead, and Mingyu was the one who killed him. 

 

His insides festered with the harsh truth of what he’d done. 

 

He was a monster. 

 

He’d always been a monster.

 

He deserved nothing less than condemnation.

 

The vampire wondered if he would ever see his beloved human again - his beautiful face, his bright eyes…his gorgeous smile. Mingyu doubted Soonyoung would ever forgive him after everything that’s happened, after everything he’s done.

 

Once his body had turned to ash and his soul had been taken from this world, would he reunite with his love in heaven? Or would he perish alone in the fiery pits of hell?

 

What came after death for a monster like him?

 

The curtains were ripped away by his maker’s hands, and Mingyu closed his eyes.

 

Warmth he had not felt in centuries slowly enveloped him in a fiery embrace. There was no pain. There was no suffering. Instead, the heat of the sun gently caressed his cold skin, as if he were an innocent child who had committed no sin. He had not expected Thanatos to be so kind to him - to numb him from the burning of his flesh.

 

But the god of the sun and the god of death were not there to comfort him. They were there to bring forth his execution.

 

This was his penance, and this was his end.

 

A pair of arms wrapped around his shoulders. They held him tight and encompassed him in an all different warmth from the sun's rays. 

 

This warmth felt like _home_. 

 

A beating heart thrummed against his chest, feeble and thready, but still beautiful compared to his own dead core. Each light thump carried the promise of solace, of something so good and so bright. 

 

He felt hair tickling his nose - soft strands carrying the sweet, alluring scent he knew so well. 

 

The vampire encircled the boys' waist as he fell backwards, slow and light, and Mingyu did not fight it. 

 

He only smiled and thanked the gods for allowing him to enter paradise, because if Soonyoung was holding him now, he had to be in heaven as well. 

 

But the boy was sobbing as they embraced each other.

 

Why was his human crying? 

 

What was there to cry about in heaven?

 

 _No more crying. Please….no more crying…_ _Everything is alright now, hyung..._

 

There was no need to cry anymore. They were free now, and they were together.

 

"Mingyu! Open your eyes, Mingyu!"

 

The airiness around him was gone, and his body descended on a hard wooden floor with a harsh thud. 

 

The impact had felt like verglas in the dead of winter. The warmth had left him swiftly, and everything felt ice cold again, the unforgiving frost shattering his great apparition of Zion. 

 

Finally, Mingyu opened his eyes.

 

Soonyoung's crying face, puffy and wet, came into his view. The human was hovering over him on his hands and knees, shielding him from the sun that had threatened to set his undead body ablaze. He had thrusted Mingyu back into the shadows, just a few inches from where he once stood. Within a hair's breath of his feet, the golden beams were tapered like the bare window's shape, and the sun's direct light could no longer reach him. 

 

“Soonyoung-hyung..." Mingyu murmured weakly, face riddled with disbelief. "A-are you really...is it really you? Ev-even after I…h-how?"

 

The human shook his head, wiping at his own tears with the back of his hand. "It doesn't matter, Mingyu."

 

"Hyung..." The tall vampire pushed himself up with his elbows, leaning in to observe the person in front of him - to convince himself that Soonyoung was not a figment of his unstable mind…a false image to further propel him into lunacy. "Hyung, I…”

 

He looked around the room again. Grey eyes were still around him, gleaming in various emotions of shock and anger…the anger coming from the woman who had wished to end him.

 

How were they going to get out of this perdition?

 

Soonyoung snaked a hand around the back of his head, pulling the brunet into his collar possessively. "I'm not going to let her kill you…”

 

How though?

 

 _How can a mortal save a monster?_ Mingyu wanted to say. 

 

There in the boy’s exposed neck, the vampire saw the aftermath of his bite - fresh and deep where his teeth had embedded themselves the night before. He’d defaced the human with his own fangs, but even after he’d done such a horrible to thing to the human, Soonyoung was the one comforting him. 

 

How twisted was their tragic tale?

 

 _How can a mortal save a monster?_ What a stupid question that was. 

 

All this time, he had been worrying for the human. For months, Mingyu had been obsessed with saving Soonyoung from his own kind. Only now had he realized that the boy was the one who was always saving him.

 

The boy…so vulnerable, so human…so much stronger than Mingyu could ever be…

 

“How despicably sweet,” came Goo Hara’s scornful remark.

 

Mingyu lifted his head and grabbed hold of Soonyoung’s hand, squeezing it forbodingly. He peered at his human, beset with what was to come.

 

The black-haired male boldly glowered at the ancient vampire in spite of the heavy weight of exhaustion plaguing his face. His body shivered violently from the cold, and the color of his skin was shockingly grey - like a corpse reanimated and barely clinging to life. Even the sun's light could not lend his deathly, ashen complexion any gleam. 

 

But the human showed no remnants of frailty in his brown eyes, because right from the start, Soonyoung had never been weak. 

 

He was just as brazen and dauntless standing in front of Mingyu’s mother as he had been with Lee Gikwang.

 

Goo Hara looked back at him, eyes narrowed and unimpressed. “I see that there is still breath in you..."

 

She side-glanced in Joshua's direction, words bubbling with masked fury as she spoke. “Did you not say you were disposing of his _carcass_?" 

 

Her most winsome fledgling did not answer, and his features showed neither shame nor guilt. Joshua remained unforthcoming and inscrutable in his stance, lips pressed tight and arms crossed over his chest. 

 

Wonwoo roared at the ancient vampire, menacing bellicose in his orbs. "You lied to us! You said Mingyu murdered him!"

 

"It was a misunderstanding,” Hara answered insouciantly, before silently eyeing the woman sitting in the corner. 

 

Kim Hyunah smirked playfully from where she sat, obviously entertained by what was happening. The red-haired death dealer whispered something to Dino, and the two of them began giggling to themselves, their grey eyes staring in Hara's direction with unvoiced pillory.

 

"Then there’s no reason for Mingyu to die," Vernon clarified, frowning at his friend's maker. "There was no crime committed, and no innocent has been murdered. Nobody has to die today."

 

"We are done here," Wonwoo declared, before glaring at the three death dealers. " _They_ are done here."

 

" _We are not done_." 

 

The room grew icier from Hara's statement. All eyes were on the vixen-like female now, and the glacial mask she wore was slowly cracking. 

 

"The former queen is right," Hyunah stated. "There is still the issue of blood for blood. Someone in this house must die."

 

"Our wonderful Queen Seolhyun is not very forgiving," Hyojong drawled passively, hands in his pockets as he leaned against the wall. "The blood price must be paid today."

 

Hara remained uncompromising. "And it shall be. With the blood of my youngest child." 

 

"You...you're mental!" Further angered by her words, Wonwoo was shaking now. His fangs were bared, and his fists were balled. "What is wrong with you? What kind of mother are you?!"

 

Minhyun grabbed onto his fledgling’s arms, pulling him back before he could charge at the brunette vampire. "Wonwoo, _stop_!"

 

His maker's absolute command rattled through his core, and Wonwoo slackened in Minhyun's arms. 

 

" _Not another word from you until this is all over!_ " his father whispered harshly into his ear. 

 

The volatile vampire stared back at his maker with a betrayed expression, his heart visibly shattering. But Wonwoo could say nothing more, instead clenching his teeth, and looked upon his best friend with watery, grey eyes.

 

"Hara-ssi, please _reconsider_ ," Vernon pleaded earnestly. He moved to stand in front of Wonwoo and his maker, blocking them from Goo Hara’s wrath. "Mingyu has done nothing wrong! _Do not_ let him perish for being guilty of no crimes.”

 

Her eyes widened threateningly at the blond vampire, knowing exactly what Vernon was trying to do, and that was when her veneer splintered. 

 

"Silence! This is still my house. You are all but guests here. Do not attempt to manipulate me with your _words_. What I say here is what stands! This is Mingyu's punishment for being a disgrace to our family!”

 

She then turned to Mingyu, glaring down at him with repugnance. “You’re an abomination! I gave you everything! I gave you life-everlasting! I gave you a family! I gave you protection! And this is how you repay me? _I loved you!_ I loved you with all my heart, Mingyu, and you choose to love a stupid _human_! You disgust me! How could I have not seen how useless and worthless you are? I should have left you to die with your pitiful sister.” 

 

Mingyu winced, the weight of her words sinking in his chest - piercing his heart and twisting away mercilessly, but before he could even feel sorry for himself, his human stood up and met Goo Hara’s frigid stare straight on.

 

"This...whatever this is. It's between you and me now," Soonyoung spoke gallantly.

 

The former vampire queen scowled. “And what is this idiocy you are spewing? You were never a part of this."

 

"You made me a part of this when you ordered Mingyu to kill me!" The human took an undaunted step forward. "Keep Mingyu out of this. Keep all your children out of this! They don't deserve to suffer because of you!"

 

Her orbs filled to a bloody red, turning sharp and jagged like rubies. She let out a taunting laugh. "You stupid human, all of my children would lay down their lives for me. What do you know of their suffering?”

 

"More than you ever cared to know. But then again, selfless love can never be expected of someone like you," Soonyoung retorted venomously. “How blind can you be?”

 

Hara hissed at the boy, fangs sharpening with her angry snarl. "I will do to my children as I please! I am their mother! Their lives are mine to spare or destroy!”

 

"A real mother would never let her children die for her own sins!"

 

A hand clasped at Mingyu's shoulder. He looked up to see his sister Tzuyu, her somber expression full of dismay. Another hand swept under his arm, bringing him up to his feet. It was Minnie, and she appeared just as aggrieved as their eldest sister.

 

Mingyu glanced at his brothers. Both of them stood far away from there mother. Neither of them stepping in to speak. All of Hara's children were keeping their distance, doing and saying nothing to interfere, just as she'd commanded them before they entered the room. All they could do now was watch the scene unfold in front of their eyes.

 

"My sins are theirs, and their sins are mine!" she screeched back at him. "They are mine to control!"

 

"They are not yours! Just because you made them does not mean you can discard them like filth!" Soonyoung shouted angrily.

 

“And what exactly do you expect to gain by disrespecting me like this?"

 

"The chance to put you in your place!”

 

Mingyu had never seen anyone irk his mother this way, and she was beginning to look unhinged, red eyes overflowing with blood-lust. It was only a matter of time before she lashed out at the human, and Mingyu didn’t know if he could handle seeing Soonyoung die a second time.

 

"Why don't you step out of the light then? Would you still be brave enough to insult me without the sun protecting you?” 

 

Her words had done nothing to faze the human, and Mingyu realized that Soonyoung must have known. He had been standing in the same place this entire time, bathing in the sunlight. She could not touch him as long as he stayed there. 

 

But how had he known that? How long had he known?

 

"I will leave the light, but not until you hear everything I have to say."

 

"Go on then. You have my undivided attention," she jeered, her face contorting with a wicked smirk. "Don't keep me waiting. I am quite eager to rip that tongue out of your ungracious mouth."

 

"I want a fight to the death. That's the only way to end this, isn't it?" the boy declared without hesitation.

 

Fight to the death. Bellum Dualis.

 

No.

 

Mingyu willed himself to move, to stop Soonyoung from what he was getting himself into, but he could not move a muscle. He couldn't even part his lips to say a single word. 

 

But Vernon was still free to do something. Just as he was about to step up and speak, Joshua held a hand out to stop him and gave the younger vampire a stern look. 

 

 _Don’t._ The winsome vampire’s eyes said.

 

The blond recoiled back into himself, closing his eyes with a heart-rendered expression.

 

Goo Hara threw her head back, laughing so hard at the absurdity of his proposal. "And who gave you that awful idea?"

 

She turned to Joshua with a piercing, accusatory gaze. "Was it you, Jisoo? Did your pretty little head plan all this?"

 

The auburn-haired vampire stared back at her vacantly, perfectly bereft of any sort of sentiment. He remained as rigid as any of them, and no words emanated from his cherry-tinted lips.

 

"I told you," Soonyoung interposed loudly, redirecting her vexation in his path once more. "This is between you and me now."

 

"Fine then, human," she growled, as her angry strides brought her closer to him. They were only a meter apart now, the sun’s rays being their only divider. "I will indulge your moronic proclivity. Fight to the death you say? What are your terms?”

 

“I only want Mingyu’s freedom from your death sentence, and your blood will serve as payment to your queen.”

 

The female vampire chuckled darkly, sinister delight displayed across her beautiful features. “But that will only happen, should you win by some extraordinary miracle. What happens if I win?”

 

"You get to kill me,” the boy answered placidly. “Isn't that what you want the most right now? Blood for blood…and my blood should be more than enough.”

 

The blood of an innocent - a willing sacrifice - without the influence of vampire magic was more than suitable payment.

 

Kim Hyunah kept watching with interest, and when she said nothing to refute the human’s offer, Hara licked her lips and chortled.

 

"So you would die in his place? You would sacrifice yourself for monsters like us?"

 

Soonyoung’s expression hardened. “Mingyu is not a monster! None of your children are! They are all pure and beautiful and divine. The only monster I see here is _you_."

 

She scoffed at his offensive remark. “And what are you? Are you not a monster like me?"

 

“I don’t care what you think of me. Whether I win or you win, Mingyu will be spared. That is all I can wish for."

 

“You only think of Mingyu. You say you care for my children, but do you realize the weight of what you want? If you kill me, everything I have will be yours. My home, my land, my position, my title - all of it will be yours. Even my children will be yours, and you will be their new master. What would you do then? How will a stupid little human defend my house?”

 

The fierce look in Soonyoung’s eyes faltered. “But I…I never- I didn’t know…”

 

“None of that matters. You are already on your deathbed.” Goo Hara grinned malevolently. “ _Bellum Dualis._ Fight to the death. I have never met a more stupid human boy!”

 

Unable to wait any longer, her arms grabbed hold of Soonyoung’s dress shirt, pulling him into the shadows so quickly that Mingyu almost didn’t see it. Her skin had only been exposed to the sun for a millisecond, but the searing burn on her pale hands was visible. It was the price to pay for her impatience, and the ancient female was too deep into her madness and anger now to see logic.

 

She flung his body across the room, and Soonyoung crashed into the wall and landed on a table. The wood broke underneath him, and the glass shattered and dug into his skin. 

 

The metallic scent of blood filled the air, and Mingyu felt his stomach churn painfully - not from hunger, but from dread. 

 

Soonyoung cringed in pain but pulled himself up onto his feet, shards of broken glass still embedded in his limbs. Blood soaked through his torn shirt and pants, his body like a scarlet canvas of anguish.  

 

Hara was fast, pinning him to the wall with her hand around his neck in the blink of an eye. 

 

The human gasped for air, a bloodied hand clawed at her face, and she retaliated by slamming his body into the wall again and again.

 

His body went limp like a raggedy doll from the repeated beatings, red dripping from his temples. He choked on his own blood as it spilled from his lips, coughing up dark red drops that splattered onto Goo Hara’s face. 

 

“You cannot defeat me,” Hara said, nails digging deeper into the boy’s neck. “You are nothing. You are no one. You do not know what we are or what we can do. We are a power that no one in this world can defeat!”

 

Mingyu was trembling with fear. He couldn’t take it anymore. He couldn’t go on watching the horrible sight of his maker slowly killing his beloved human. 

 

He still fought hard against her command, gritting his teeth as he kept trying to push past his bounds. The more he struggled, the more his bones burned in tortuous pain. 

 

Soonyoung was going to die. There was no way an ordinary, powerless mortal could win against their maker. She would make sure to end him properly this time. 

 

Mingyu pleaded for someone, anyone to come and help the poor boy. The queen, the council, the death dealers, someone…anyone. There had to be someone who could save Soonyoung.

 

“T-then this shouldn’t hurt at all,” Soonyoung muttered back, before slicing her neck with a blade drawn from his back. 

 

She released him with a shriek, hands covering her own bleeding neck. 

 

Soonyoung fell to the floor and forced his body to crawl away as quickly as he could. 

 

Mingyu was taken aback upon seeing the Blade of Shimatani was in the boy’s bloody hands. 

 

“I see…so you do plan on killing me…” Hara scowled. The laceration in her neck was not healing, and her own blood was running down her white dress.

 

The human was panting. He looked like he was about to pass out, but he still stood back up again, refusing to back down from the fight. 

 

He wielded the small blade and moved to strike at her, but Hara easily dodged his attack and slapped the knife out of his hand. The blade skidded to the other side of the room, but the human didn’t run after it. 

 

Soonyoung kneed her in the side as his counterattack but howled in pain when the contact shattered his leg bones. He fell to the floor again, and she grasped at his throat one last time.

 

“This ends now,” she hissed through bared teeth. 

 

_No, mother, no…_

 

There was blood everywhere, so much blood that Mingyu didn’t even know whose blood was whose anymore.

 

Mingyu looked at the human, and Soonyoung gazed back at him. Even as death was about to take him, he still stared back at Mingyu with love. Pure, unadulterated love and fondness - love that Mingyu never deserved.

 

“I love you,” the boy mouthed with a soft smile. It was his time to go.

 

This was their end. 

 

They were never meant to be together. Right from the start, Mingyu had known. Maybe they both had known, but they had been stubborn. 

 

Maybe in another life…maybe then, they would be right for each other.

 

“I love you too,” the vampire mouthed back.

 

_Good bye, Mingyu._

 

Hara’s fangs sunk into the boy’s neck, voraciously taking in the rest of his blood. 

 

He could see the light slipping away from Soonyoung’s lustrous brown eyes, leaving the orbs hollow and lifeless like the fall of dusk. His lips parted with a weak sigh, hands falling limply at his sides.

 

_Good bye, Soonyoung._

 

Goo Hara released the boy and dropped his unmoving body to the floor, wiping away the remnants of red off her face. 

 

“Blood for blood. Paid in full,” Hara said to Hyunah. 

 

The red-haired ancient smiled and stood up. “Our business here is done then.”

 

The three death dealers turned to leave.

 

But a single rasp echoing through the quiet room stopped them from taking another step. Kim Hyunah frowned, and Dino looked to her in confusion. Hyojong was the only one who seemed unsurprised by the sound.

 

All grey eyes fell on the dead human, waiting for him to make another sound... 

 

...but the sound had not come from the boy. 

 

Goo Hara placed a hand over her mouth, wheezing as another painful cough escaped her. She kept gasping and coughing into her hands and stumbled to the floor without grace, her legs too weak to hold her upright. Blackened, rancid blood was pouring from her mouth and eyes, and her skin was turning sickeningly grey. 

 

“What is happening?”

 

Minnie’s question met no response as they all watched Goo Hara vomit her putrescent organs, unable to help her. No one knew how.

 

“M-Mingyu!” she cried out in despair...in desperation, body convulsing next to Soonyoung’s rigid form.  

 

Mingyu could feel the suppressing weight of her magic lift from his body, loosening from him limbs and throat, and that only meant one thing. “I don’t understand…why is she...our mother...she's-”

 

“She’s dying,” Hyuna finally spoke. Her voice and face held no trepidation, unlike Hara’s bewildered children...all except for one.

 

“Jeonghan! Lisa!” Joshua yelled clamantly, eyes burning past the three death dealers, and the two vampires came bursting through the doors without delay.

 

But they weren't there to help Goo Hara.

 

They kneeled beside the motionless human, not even mindful of the ancient vampire heaving beside the boy. The Thai vampire ripped his dress bloodied shirt open and started chest compressions, while the platinum-haired male was setting up an IV line in the boy’s arm. 

 

They’d brought in two kits with them. Jeonghan opened one of the boxes to reveal ice packs and pouches filled with saline and B-positive blood. 

 

Vernon snapped out of his disbelief and rushed to the human’s side as well, grabbing the other kit to search for bandages. “Minghao! Someone call Xu Minghao!”

 

Wonwoo brought out his phone and dialed frantically. 

 

There was a shift happening. Mingyu could feel it deep in his gut, and as he looked at his dying mother with unending pity, the pull of gravity beckoned for his attention to focus on the human they were urgently trying to revive. 

 

_Master…_

 

Soonyoung was his master now. 

 

A heartbeat, two heart beats. They were weak and laggard, but they were there. 

 

His fingertips and toes were tingling, and his bones were aching with a different need. He knew his siblings had felt it too, because they rushed to the human’s side instead of their mother. 

 

Soonyoung needed them.

 

They needed Soonyoung. 

 

But Mingyu stayed behind, forlorn and pained with guilt, and reached for Goo Hara’s hand as she withered away. She reached out to him as well, but her body turned to ash before they could touch.

 

Just like that, his maker was gone. 

 

“This is her penance,” Joshua spoke coldly, peering down at her ashes the same way she did while condemning Mingyu to death. “For everything she has done…for everything she would have done. Blood for blood. Paid in full.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

Tzuyu reached for the heavy curtains, pushing them over the casement windows until the room was dark and dreary once more. 

 

“We will inform the queen of this…strange turn of events…” Hyunah stated, looking warily at Joshua. Hyojong and Dino were standing in front of her, ready to protect their maker from the winsome vampire before them. They were on edge now, untrusting of him and what he might do next.

 

“Please do,” Joshua answered pleasantly, grey eyes glinting with iniquity. “Please let her know that we are under a new power now and that we will be holding a celebratory gathering soon. We wish to invite her…and every member of the council, of course, and all the other houses. We need to formally introduce our new father to the vampire world.”

 

“Will you be the one turning him?” Dino asked boldly.

 

“No…there is no need to. He is a human who has defeated an ancient vampire, a former queen. Therefore, he is above us all. Why would we need to turn him into something weaker than what he is now?”

 

The newborn winced and glared at the winsome vampire. “You think we are weaker than him? All I need to do is snap his neck to end him.”

 

The auburn-haired vampire smirked. “Go ahead. Kill him, and suffer the consequences.”

 

The flash of amethyst in Joshua’s left eye had startled Dino into silence, and his maker pulled him behind her protectively.  

 

“I hope we never have to fight on opposite sides, Joshua,” Hyunah said. “You are the most wicked thing I’ve ever laid eyes on. Your mother created a masterpiece in you.”

 

“Why thank you, and I also hope our houses remain loyal to one another. Our new master _will_ be your future king after all.”

 

She kept smiling, though it was tight and forced. “We will be taking our leave now…” 

 

The vampire turned on her heels, flipping her velveteen curls over her shoulder as she walked away. Dino followed closely behind her, but Hyojong lingered for short moment. 

 

“We will be watching you…” His eyes flickered to the sleeping mortal lying on the floor. “All of you…”

 

Then, he was gone.

 

“We will be leaving as well,” Minhyun said apprehensively. Wonwoo and Vernon followed behind him somberly. “I am sure your family needs time to grieve and recuperate.”

 

Joshua simply smiled at the three. “Thank you for your visit. It has been pleasant.”

 

Vernon looked mentally exhausted, unable to cope with everything that had happened, and could only mumble back. “Thanks for having us, Josh…”

 

Minhyun placed a hand on the blond’s head, stroking his hair to soothe the young vampire. It was the best he could do, because he was not Vernon’s maker, and his presence could do nothing to appease Vernon’s troubled mind.  

 

Wonwoo glanced back at Mingyu, mouth parting to say something. But the vampire stopped himself, biting down hard into his lip and clenching his fists, and left the room with his maker and his friend.

 

“Minghao, it’s time to leave,” Junhui proclaimed, thoroughly peeved by how everything had ended. 

 

His eyes narrowed at the unconscious boy in Minnie’s arms, the same human that Minghao was caressing - his cold hand softly running over Soonyoung’s face.

 

“I did my best, but I cannot heal what is in the mind,” the gangly vampire said before standing and turning away sadly. 

 

Junhui placed a hand on his back, ushering him to the exit. 

 

“This is the last time you will use Minghao for his gift,” he announced loudly to the entire room, before eyeing Joshua with contempt. “I did what you asked of me. Now leave our family alone. We are not your pawns in your hideous game, Joshua.”

 

“Of course not, Junhui.” Joshua’s eyes landed on Minghao’s distraught face. “Of course not…”

 

With that, the two Chinese vampires made their way out the door.

 

Seungcheol approached his brother uneasily, looking forlornly at Soonyoung and then at Mingyu. “Joshua…”

 

Their youngest brother was standing in the corner of the room, unwilling to go near the unconscious human. Mingyu looked too troubled, too disturbed by everything that had transpired.

 

“He’ll be fine,” Joshua assured him, smile disappearing from his lips. “Mingyu needs to grow up. He’s already three hundred years old for goodness' sake.”

 

The harshness in his voice had been so horribly feigned, Seungcheol could tell he was struggling to keep his heinous visage on. Even Joshua had his limits, no matter how perfectly skilled he was at manipulating and lying. He’d been playing the game for far too long, and the years were finally wearing him down.

 

Still, he loved and trusted his brother, and even if Joshua was a twisted and conniving weasel, Seungcheol would stay loyal to him until his last very breath. 

 

After all, Joshua had taken on his penance when Goo Hara wanted him punished for killing Yong Junhyung. Not once had his younger brother ever held it over his head, and it had remained a secret between the three of them this entire time. 

 

For years and years, he wondered why Joshua would do such a thing. Given his dastardly reputation, Seungcheol had always thought it had been a ploy to use against him someday, but as the centuries went by…as he watched his brother day by day, the truth came to him like an adagio in spring. 

 

Joshua had suffered in Seungcheol’s place - rankled to the point of near-death, because he couldn’t bear to see his older brother harmed.

 

He couldn’t ever bear to see any of his siblings hurt again, not after he had been forced to kill Jackson, and what happened to their mother only served as a testament to that. 

 

“But…will _you_ be fine?” the eldest queried. He’d seen the same flash of amethyst Dino had witnessed just moments ago. 

 

Joshua was running out of time. 

 

“Don’t smother me with your worry,” the auburn-haired vampire responded in pique. “This is how the game is played. You either win or lose. There is nothing in between.”

 

Oh, how the cruelty of life and death had hardened his brother. “Did you ever even plan on winning?”

 

Joshua chortled, a sad and defeated laugh leaving him, and Seungcheol’s question was left unanswered.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Mingyu quietly watched from the shadows as Soonyoung arose from his slumber. The human had looked completely at ease, peacefully dreaming without the hindrance of the impiety lurking in their home. 

 

But now, as his glossy eyes took in his darkened surroundings, with twilight barely peeking from the curtains, the boy’s face morphed from serenity to hysteria. He was screaming and crying, terror-stricken by images no one else could see. 

 

The vampire stepped out of the darkness, fraught with the unsettled emotions of his new master, but Mingyu did not know what to do to pacify the human. 

 

Tzuyu rushed into the room and gathered the boy into her arms. “It’s okay…it’s okay,” she whispered into his ears, lulling him back to sleep with her calming voice. 

 

This was how the days and nights went by now. Soonyoung was hardly eating or drinking, and soon, they would need to start feeding him through tubes. When he was awake, all he would do was relapse into delirium and weep until one of them would coerce him back into unconsciousness. 

 

This was what occured day by day, over and over in a seemingly endless cycle.

 

Mingyu had begged his brothers to change the human, hoping that the vampiric poison would mend his mind and bring him back to sense and reality.

 

“No, absolutely not. You know what would become of him if we change him now,” Joshua objected unsparingly. “He will die, or if he’s unlucky, he’ll turn into something horrid like your old friend Jihoon.”

 

Soonyoung had to be on the edge of death, calling for the gift on his own volition.

 

“Let him come back to us in his own time, Mingyu,” Seungcheol offered, his tone still rough but surprisingly dulled by the smallest hint of softness. His eldest brother had been much more benign since Goo Hara’s death…as if he were slowly taking on the temperament of their new master. 

 

He knew his brothers cared. He knew that they trusted their master to get through this on his own. The boy had already proven just how strong he was.

 

But Soonyoung was still a human, and Mingyu could no longer watch him waste away.

 

“I am sorry, hyung,” Mingyu muttered against the sleeping human’s head. “I did this to you. Everything is my fault.”

 

They laid together in bed like they had done many times before. He held the boy close, arms wrapped tight and possessive around his small, warm body. His face was buried in the human’s neck, lips ghosting over the detestable scar he’d made with his own teeth - the only mark on the mortal’s body that refused to fade. 

 

“But you need to help me, hyung. You need to come back to me,” Mingyu begged innumerably. He begged again and again, night after night, until he was no longer aware of the time nor day. “Please, Soonyoung. Please come back.”

 

But the stubborn boy would not yield to his pleas. 

 

The brunet vampire pressed his lips against the unresponsive human’s mouth, sobbing and quivering from what he was about to do. He gently laid the boy back down and moved to stand next to the bed. 

 

“I will love you all my life,” Mingyu spoke, grey eyes turning bloody red and fangs sharpening. 

 

He lifted the boy’s arm to his mouth. “I will love you no matter what. I will never love anyone but you.”

 

His words held more meaning than the promises he uttered. He knew that this was not the right thing to do. He didn't even know if it would work, but he needed to do _something_.

 

His thoughts were focused on nothing but his love for his human, reminding himself repeatedly that this was his most precious person. He had to control every monstrous instinct he had, to hold on to that love he felt so deeply, and to swear to himself that this would be the last.

 

This would be the last time he would ever hurt Soonyoung.

 

“I’m so sorry, hyung,” he apologized one final time, before biting into the boy’s flesh with all his might.

 

The human shot up from where he was laying and released a horrible cry of agony. The pain coursed through his entire body, shocking him wide awake and cognizant of the world once more.

 

Soonyoung’s free hand formed a fist, and just as it was about to collide with Mingyu’s torso, the vampire caught his wrist swiftly. The mortal certainly didn’t need another broken hand. 

 

“M-Mingyu?” the boy’s voice trembled, heartbeat pounding wildly in his chest. The light in his expressive brown orbs was back, like daybreak and summer and everything the sun could touch. 

 

The world, the sun, the moon, and the stars were all in front of Mingyu - embodied in the shining human and his gorgeous eyes. His master, his lover, his beginning, and his end - everything he ever needed and more.

 

Kwon Soonyoung.

 

The brunet retracted his bloodied fangs and released the boy’s arm. His eyes returned to their icy grey color. “Don’t ever leave me again…”

 

Mingyu kissed the boy once more, and this time, Soonyoung kissed him back.

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Mother, I have a question for you.”

 

Hyunah turned to her youngest fledgling with glee, ignoring the indignant look on Hui’s face, as she yet again chose to neglect her duties in favor of doting on her newest son.

 

“Mother, the reports?” Hui reminded her, gesturing at the mountain of paperwork resting on the table. 

 

“Later, darling,” she said over her shoulder, winking at him before pulling Dino into her ample bosom. “Tell me what’s bothering you, my child.”

 

“I just don’t understand,” Dino replied cautiously, eyes deep in perplexity and fear. “Why didn’t Kim Mingyu turn to ash like his mother did when she drank from the human boy?”

 

Hyunah hummed. “I do not know, my dear. Our world is one of many mysteries. Even I don’t have the answers to everything, and I have seen many wonders in my one thousand years of second life.”

 

“It’s all just so strange,” the young prodigy continued, eyes fluttering as his maker stroked his hair. “It’s like they planned everything. All six of them. What kind of children would conspire to kill their own mother?”

 

His mother chuckled at her son’s confusion. He still had so much to learn. “Oh darling, Chwe Hansol is not Goo Hara’s child. He belongs to the House of Yoon Mirae.”

 

“I know, mother.” Dino looked up at her, grey eyes wide and innocent. “I’m talking about the vampire with the long black hair and yellow eyes. He didn’t move or say anything the entire time, but he’s even scarier than his brother Joshua.”

 

The death dealer stilled, veins running cold - her smile replaced by a look of debilitating horror.

 

That man was no brother of Joshua’s.

 

Hui sensed their maker’s abrupt change in mood and immediately moved to her side. “Mother, what’s wrong?”

 

If _he_ had shown himself to her fledgling, then it was just as she feared.

 

She stared dolefully at her youngest, regretting how she had underestimated his power. Dino was still so young, not even a year old yet, but  _he_ was already planning to take her child away. “My darling Dino, forgive me, but I cannot protect you against what’s coming.”

 

Lee Gikwang had been right all along.

 

“Hoetaek,” she said to Hui. “Go to the queen. Tell her _he_ ’s back. Kwon Jiyong is back.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy mother of chapters, I finally finished Penance!!!! I can't believe it's done, but I'm glad there's more to come. I really really enjoyed writing this behemoth, even though I feel kinda bad that DK couldn't make an appearance. This was such a rollercoaster ride for me, and I hope you guys had fun reading all ten chapters! I might take a teeny tiny break to write another SoonGyu fic. Just to kinda refresh my pallet and keep the gears turning. I need something light and funny and smutty after Penance XD especially since Savior is going to be a lot darker with what I have in mind. 
> 
> Here's some more fun facts about this fic:  
> 1.) I like slipping in references to real life SVT and their shenanigans in every chapter. Not all of them make the final cut, and a lot of them are subtle like the reference to Home in this chapter. Let me know what other easter eggs you guys find!  
> 2.) As you guys know, Joshua is my favorite character here, and my inspiration for making him so diabolical here was the way his eyes actually do sparkle in real life. I was like, with how kind he looks, wouldn't it be fun to cast him as the villain?  
> 3.) I didn't want to end this with Mingyu and Soonyoung kissing. I wanted to wait until the end of COE 3 before they kissed, but I couldn't help myself! It just felt so right to end it the way I did, but then, Dino just snuck up on me and that's how Penance came to a close. Sneaky Dino!  
> 4.) Speaking of kisses, Mingyu isn't the first person in the SVT cast to share a kiss with Soonyoung! *GASP* You guys will find out who got to kiss him first in Savior, but I have a feeling a lot of you will figure it out on your own. It's not DK, I swear XDDDD  
> 5.) While writing the last two chapters of Penance, I started lurking around the bird app cuz CARATLAND. Lo and behold, SoonGyu decided to be flirts and gave us hugs galore! How cute are they??? Sometimes, I wonder if maybe they really are something more. I'll support them whether they're gay, straight, bi, pan, asexual, but that little nagging voice in my head keeps making me think that something really could be going on with them behind the cameras and the fan service. Why? ILEX MA. Y'all know what I'm talking about! Of course, I could be wrong. But I'm just sharing my thoughts ;) don't hate me.  
> 6.) The recent events surrounding Lee Seungri has made me decide to replace him with someone else for my story. He's supposed to be Seungkwan's maker, but I'm going to change that little detail soon.  
> 7.) For all you EXO and BTS fans, they will be making more appearances in Savior and COE 3! I might even give them their own little spin-offs, but for now, I'm focusing on writing the SVT part of this universe.  
> 8.) More members of Pristin and After School will be making appearances too! *cough* Nayoung *cough* Nana *cough cough cough*  
> 9.) I know there are still a lot of unanswered questions for this fic. Everything will be revealed in time. Most of them in Savior. COE 3 is going to be the great divide between SVT. Good vs evil. Right over wrong. Mingyu and Soonyoung are going to have an even harder time, and their love for one another might be the very thing that destroys their relationship. I know it's kind of odd right? But that's the direction this fic is going.  
> 10.) Lastly, no, Mingyu did not turn Soonyoung into a vampire. Life aint that easy, yo! 
> 
>  
> 
> Anyway, just cuz I love you guys, I added a little preview to the next installment - Children of Eden: Savior...just click to the next chapter and enjoy! :)


	11. Preview to Children of Eden: Savior

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been looking for a Savior...I've been looking for a real one to hold on to...I've been looking for a Savior...Savior...to save me...
> 
> Gosh this song fits so well.

 

 

 

 

_A thousand times we die in one life. We crumble, break, and tear apart until the layers of illusion are burned away and all that is left, is the truth of who and what we really are._

_-Teal Scott_

 

 

 

  
Joshua smiled as he sauntered across their mother’s old room, his grey eyes glistening in unholy mirth. In his gangly arms, he cradled the clear jar of his maker’s remnants - black ashes of a fallen ancient who willingly threw away the lives of her children.

 

“It’s not your fault, mother. Do not blame yourself,” Joshua chirped, peering out the window. He bathed himself in the glorious moonlight, sighing in content. “I know you loved us, just as you claimed, even if it were only an inkling of affection. Surely, you did. After all, you did make us. How can a mother not love her own children?”

 

The vampire hugged the jar of dead entrails, thoroughly pleased with himself for being generous enough to offer her closure. She deserved it, even if she was already gone. “They would have killed you, you know? Your friends in the council, they would have ripped you limb from limb, then hung your head outside their fortress. I think this was a much better fate than that.”

 

Joshua observed his own reflection in the glass window. Purple eyes stared back at him instead of grey but now was not the time to fret. There was still so much that needed to be done. “Everything is going to be alright, mother. I promise you. Kwon Soonyoung… you have no idea how much he loves my brother.”

 

He set the jar down on her dresser, glancing at the ashes with commiseration. “I’m sorry I had to end you this way, but you left me with no other choice.”

 

The auburn-haired male sighed again, face cringing from the tears that threatened to fall. “I’m so so tired, mother. I wanted to quit so long ago, but you forced me to keep playing. You were going to let us all die. You were going to let _Mingyu_ die.”

 

He rubbed away a stray tear, composing himself so he could once again hide behind his mask. “Let me make it up to you, mother. You always loved a good secret. Let me tell you one of mine. Let me tell you about Kwon Soonyoung and how he will end it all.”

 

 

 

 


End file.
